DoubleM and KID vs Conan
by Azarath235
Summary: There's a new Phantom Thief on the loose and he's allied with the Kaito KID! With a second thief to rival with, how will Conan catch Double-M and Kaito KID? What will this strange partnership turn into and why have they suddenly become allies? Rated T
1. Summary

**A/N: Here's a lil' summary about this story :D I originally had snippets of my first chapter in here but it got confusing as was pointed out to me so, instead, I put in a larger summary of the story in here.**

Double-M and Kaito KID vs. Conan Full(er) Summary

There's a new Phantom Thief on the loose and he's allied with Kaito KID! With a second thief to rival with, how will Conan catch Double-M _and_ Kaito KID? What will this strange partnership turn into and why have they suddenly become allies? Not only that, but now Conan has one more problem to add to his growing list: Avoiding the suspicions of a new transfer student at Ran's school with a very observant eye despite the front she puts up. Is this transfer student a prospective ally or is she a dangerous enemy? Now Conan has to break through the masks to keep him and his friends safe. "Masks hide the truth." "Well, it's a detective's _job_ to unravel the truth."

Rated T (mainly for language)

Warnings consist of language, mild romance, mild violence, and LOTS of teasing.

**Final Notes: Did this summary entice you potential readers? I certainly hope so. So... are you gonna click on either the 'Review This Chapter' button or the 'Next' button? Please choose either/or both of these options. It will create a happy authoress and happy authoresses create new chapters. :D**


	2. Obsidian Black (1)

**A/N: OI!!! The first chapter is finally up! I apologize in advance for any spelling and grammar mistakes I may have missed.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan, this anime/manga belongs to Gosho Aoyama! I only own Double-M, Kasuma, and the plot. (By the way… This little disclaimer will apply to all chapters that are added to this story, so I don't think I'll need to repeat that fact before every chapter)**

**Warnings: There are some references to some small things like Alice in Wonderland (for example) in here. Of course I don't own any of them.

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Double-M and Kaito KID vs. Conan: Obsidian Black

* * *

Osaka, Japan

Hattori Residence

July 9, 9:52

_KONBANWA…AT LEAST IT WILL BE WHEN Y0U GET THIS LETTER. LET'5 HAVE A PARTY TO WELCOME MY RETURN TO THE RISING SUN. I3EFORE I 2ANCE AWAY WITH THE NIGHT.

* * *

_

Last Day Before Summer Break

Beika, Japan

July 10, 3:47 PM

"'KONBANWA…. AT LEAST IT WILL BE WHEN Y0U GET THIS LETTER. LET'5 HAVE A PARTY TO WELCOME MY RETURN TO THE RISING SUN. I3EFORE I 2ANCE AWAY WITH THE NIGHT.'" Detective of the West, Hattori Heiji, read off through the phone. "Oi, Kudo, did you get that?"

"Yeah, I got it… I just don't understand it. You said there was no signature, right?" Conan spoke through the phone. He looked down at his own copy he'd written down and frowned. "Did the fax have anything else strange, Heiji?"

"Ya mean other than the note itself? Yeah, there are a couple a' numbers mixed in the letter. Let's see…" Heiji scanned the note for the said numbers, "Hey Kudo, ya listening? Alright, first there's a zero replacing the 'o' of the first you, a five replacing the 's' in let's, a three standing in for the 'b' in before, and a two instead of a 'd' in dance."

On the other side of the line, Conan wrote down the four numbers at the bottom of the page in his detective notebook and studied them furiously, only ending up ruffling his brown hair vigorously. 'What the hell do these numbers mean? Could it be an address…? No, there's no street listed in the note. A landmark? But what landmark uses numbers like these—'

"What have we here?" Conan heard Heiji mumbling. A quiet beeping noise eradicated from Heiji's side of the line along with the distinct sound of a printer. "Hey Heiji, what's going on over there?"

"Apparently, I've got mail. Well… a fax, to be more accurate."

"What does it say? Is it from the same person?" Conan asked, curiosity aroused.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?!" Heiji exclaimed. There was a rustle of papers heard form the other line as Heiji seemed to be frantically searching for papers of some sort.

Conan frowned, "Heiji, what did it say? You'd better spill."

Heiji growled, "It says. 'I wonder who your friend is. Maybe I should introduce myself to your small friend. I think I'll send him the location of my upcoming heist as well as a time frame. From your Double-M,'"

'Double-M? What does that mean?' "Say, Heiji, did that letter say 'heist'? Meaning a thief." Conan asked walking over to the beeping fax machine and staring at the paper sliding out of the printer.

"Yeah, it says 'heist'." Heiji answered, "Is it the Kaito KID?"

"Can't be, KID doesn't work like this. It must be someone new. Whoever he or she is is apparently _'returning'_ to Japan so maybe an international thief who's Japanese?" Conan suggested.

"Or maybe this 'Double-M' person pulled off heists here in Japan however many years ago and decided to return." Heiji growled, "I wish I knew what those numbers meant. Oh, while we're on the topic, has KID pulled any burglaries lately?"

"None whatsoever, his most recent heist was three weeks ago. He stole a series of opals from an extremely rich family in Tokyo. He hasn't shown up since. Ne, Heiji, how does this person know who you're talking to?"

"Oi, did you really get a fax from this person? What does if say?" Heiji asked.

Conan read the brief note before reading aloud, "'Konbanwa chibitantei-kun. Please inform your friend of the contents of this note: Be at Beika Museum for the appearance and disappearance of Beika's prized Night jewel on the twenty-third at midnight. DON'T be late.'" Conan frowned.

"Twenty-third? That's almost two weeks from now. Why would this person let us know two weeks in advance? That's _too_ much time to prepare for his arrival. Huh, I guess that's how he works."

Conan looked out the window and saw Ran and what seemed to be one of her classmates approaching the Detective Agency, "Hey, Ran's coming, I gotta go." _CLICK._

Conan set the phone back in place and dragged the sheet of paper from the desktop, staring intently at it as he sat down at the couch and sunk into the cushions. The doorknob rattled as Ran twisted the knob and opened the door, very nearly dragging the girl in with her. "Ah, there you are Conan-kun."

"Hello Ran-neechan, who's that?" Conan asked in his high-pitched, innocent, childish voice.

"Ah," Ran murmured, turning to smile at her guest. "Conan-kun, I'd like you to meet Kazuki Kasuma, she just transferred this year." She addressed Kasuma, "I need to get my wallet from upstairs but you can hang around here with Conan-kun."

Ran walked out the door and ascended the stairs. Conan turned back to the piece of paper in his hand and didn't pay attention to the extra figure in the room. So… he didn't notice her come up from behind him and look over his shoulder. "What ya lookin' at Conan-kun?"

Conan jumped and turned in his seat, "Oh, Kasuma-neechan. It's just a piece of paper I found on Oji-san's desk. It looks like a letter!" Conan said plastering on a face of false excitement.

"Oh, just a piece of paper, nothing else interesting on it?" Kasuma read the contents of the letter before Conan could hide it under a magazine on the table. "Huh, is your oji-san playing games with you. Like Cops and Robbers?" she smiled, "Sounds like fun… but I wonder if the Night jewel in the note refers to the Night Phantom jewel that's going to be exhibited soon. I read about it in a magazine… let's see, ah, it was this one." She exclaimed, picking up a magazine on the desk. She flipped through the pages and stopped somewhere in the middle before laying her eyes on the small bag she brought with her, "Oh, I completely forgot. Conan-kun, is there a bathroom down here, I really need to get out of this annoying uniform."

"Uh huh, it's the first door on the left," Conan answered, pointing down the hallway closest to him.

"Thanks," she smiled and ruffled Conan's hair before picking up her bag and walking down the hallway.

Conan fixed his hair and got up when his eyes fell on the magazine Kasuma had left open. 'Heh, those uniforms _are_ pretty annoying.' Conan thought as he picked up the discarded magazine on the desk and stared at the open page.

'So if that's the jewel this thief wants, there's no way I'm letting him get it.' Conan—or, rather, Shinichi-- thought as he ripped the ad out and stuffed it into his pant pocket.

Just then Ran walked in and stuffed her wallet into her small white purse. Only then did she look around, "Where's Kazuki-san?"

"She said she was going to change out of her uniform, she's in the bathroom over there." Conan explained, pointing to the hallway for the second time within the last ten minuets.

"Oh, Ran-san, you can call me Kasuma." Came a faint sound from within the bathroom. The door opened and Kasuma walked out, twirling her drawstring bag around in a circle, "I really don't mind."

She indeed had changed… a light blue tank top and a pair of flare jeans had replaced the blue uniform and she had pulled her long brown hair up into a loose braid. "So can you Conan-kun." She looked down at the boy sitting on the couch once again.

"Aw… but I liked Kasuma-neechan better." Conan flashed a disappointed face.

The girl in blue laughed softly, "Fine, whatever suits you best. Come on Ran, we have to meet Sonoko up at the mall." She looked at the boy in the room again. "Are you here alone Conan-kun? I'm sure we'll be able to bring you along, right Ran-san?"

Ran turned around, "Oh right, I forgot Otou-san was working on a case in Osaka. Conan-kun, do you want to come?"

"Yeah!" Conan exclaimed. 'It's better than being cooped up here all day.' Con--Shinichi added.

"Alright, it's settled. Come on then." Kasuma piped up, picking up a small coat she saw hanging on the coat rack by the door. Assuming it belonged to the boy, she lightly tossed the object to the fast approaching boy who caught it neatly and slipped it on.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Outside a Floral Shop

July 10, 4:03 PM

Standing outside a nearby floral shop, the two high-school girls and first grader waited for yet another person to join their small group. Ran was holding Conan by the hand to make sure he didn't run off like he normally did while her friend, Kasuma, admired the many floral arrangements. Suddenly she smirked and faced Ran, "Who was that friend of yours that Sonoko mentioned? I've forgotten his name."

"You mean Shinichi?" Ran asked quietly.

Conan looked up at Ran. "Yeah, that's who it was. Famous High-School Detective of the East, Kudo Shinichi, right? Why don't you get him one of these bouquets?" Kasuma said, smirk widening.

"What? That's stupid, Shinichi wouldn't like flowers!" Ran said blushing furiously.

"Oh? I beg to differ." Kasuma nudged Ran's shoulder, "Then why do you look like an over-ripe tomato? You know you want to, Ran-san."

"No way," Ran exclaimed, shaking her head profusely. "No way on Earth!" Ran looked away and focused her attention on something other than Kasuma or the shop behind them.

"Ne, Conan-kun, why are _you _blushing? You're almost as red as Ran-san." Kasuma asked, leaning down so she was at his level.

"Ah nanimonai, Kasuma-neechan." Conan waved his free hand wildly while shaking his head.

"Are you sure Conan-kun," she pressed. "You seem really embarrassed."

Conan nodded and added silently, 'That was low… Please change the subject, please change the subject, _please change the subject._'

"Oiii, Ran, Kasuma! Hayaku!" another familiar female voice exclaimed.

'Heh, saved by the bell,' Conan thought, relieved.

"Sonoko, there you are." Ran turned around (the blush receding), secretly thankful for the distraction. "What took you so long?" Every single word in that sentence screamed out _'Thank god you're here. You just saved my skin.' _And _'Please don't let me endure that again.'_

"Say, Sonoko, don't you think Ran should sen—mmph!" Ran had rushed up to Kasuma and clasped her hand tightly over her mouth to avoid any more words from slipping from her mouth.

"I think Ran should what?" Sonoko asked, curiosity growing like a wildfire. A wildfire that was nearly impossible to put out… Except for this specific case.

"Hi, Sonoko-neechan!" Conan exclaimed, rushing up to the newest arrival and jumping up and down.

Sonoko's attention was instantly diverted, "Who brought four-eyes here?"

'Heh, it's just _that_ easy.' Shinichi smirked internally. "Sonoko! 'Four-eyes' here has a name." Ran retorted.

Sonoko looked down at Conan, "Nope, not in_ my _books."

Conan rolled his eyes and looked up at the three girls, "Where are we going Ran-neechan? Kasuma-neechan?" He plastered his most innocent face on.

"Somewhere _you_ don't need to be at." Sonoko exclaimed, peering down at Conan.

'Humph, says you.' Shinichi added rather childlike (at least for _his_ age).

"Well he does today," Ran pointed out. "Dad's out on a very important case and there's no one else to watch him."

"We're going to the new super mall that just opened. Does that answer your question, Conan-kun?" Kasuma replied.

"Uh huh, thanks Kasuma-neechan," Conan nodded and smiled.

It was Kasuma's turn to grab Conan's hand and follow the other girls. Conan flinched slightly at the unfamiliar hand but didn't pull away and followed quietly, sometimes lagging behind. Kasuma would, at that time, then tug lightly on Conan's hand and he would snap out of his trance and quicken his pace.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Mega Mall

July 10, 4:56 PM

"Hey, hurry up, we're goin' in here. Come on, come on!" Sonoko announced, running into another shop.

"Sonoko, this is what, the twentieth shop we've been to. You're still not done shopping?" Kasuma asked gripping tightly at a few of her bags along with some of Sonoko's purchases. Grudgingly, she followed suit and looked around. Ran appeared behind her, holding onto Conan's hand lightly.

Ran giggled quietly, "That's Sonoko right there, might want to get used to it Kasuma."

"Heh and I thought _I_ was bad. Sonoko beat me—or I guess it'd be more of a landslide—that's just crazy." Kasuma snickered and adjusted her grip on the bags.

Ran looked down at her onus, "Uh, Kasuma, do you want me to take some of those bags? You've got a lot already." She started to reach down for some of the bags but Kasuma pulled away.

"No way, you are not getting any of these. Well…" an evil smirk appeared.

'I have a _bad_ feeling about this,' Shinichi thought.

"_I'll_ let _you_ carry some of these only if you buy something." The smirk turned into an equally evil grin, "Like for Shi-ni-chi." She added in a singsong voice.

Ran blushed madly, "Uh, I think I'll take back my offer."

Kasuma shook her head vigorously, "Iie, you already offered, you _are_ going to buy something for Shinichi, and I will watch your every move until you make a suitable purchase." She looked down at Conan briefly but shifted her gaze back to Ran. Kasuma switched all her bags to her left hand and used her right to grab Ran's free hand, pulling her all the way to the men's department and added, "He _is_ a man, right?" jokingly.

Sonoko joined the two girls and Conan in the men's department murmuring, "Good idea, maybe I'll buy something for Makoto…"

Ran instantly jumped at the diversion, "Yes, you should. What were you thinking of Sonoko?"

Kasuma rolled her eyes and stifled a giggle. She bent down and faced Conan, "You were doing it again Conan-kun."

"Huh, what are you talking about Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked innocently.

"Nope, that whole 'I'm innocent, please don't hurt me' look is not going to work on me, Conan-kun. I've been around too many kids to know that you're trying to divert the conversation, or at least make it seem like you don't know what's going on. It's cute but… not working." She smiled, "So…. Doushite? Spill boy. It's okay if you have a crush on Ran-san, it happens."

"N-no, that's not it! Really, it isn't!" Conan whispered urgently.

"Are you sure? Hmm… doubt it. You're hiding something, Conan-kun, and I _will_ find out what."

'Shit, she's a _lot_ more observant than she first let on. I'll have to be careful around her. She might blow my cover.' Shinichi thought, fighting the urge to Back. Away. Slowly. "Heh, I'm not hiding anything!" Conan assured.

Sonoko, curious on what Conan and Kasuma could be talking about, began advancing to where Kasuma was squatting. Suddenly Kasuma laughed, stood up, and ruffled Conan's hair. "Good one Conan-kun, I'll have to tell that to my little brother someday."

"What were you talking about Kasuma?" Sonoko asked, hints of a frown appearing on her face.

"Oh, nothing really, Conan was just telling me about a riddle he learned at school." She turned to Conan, "That one was fairly hard, I'm surprised you were able to come up with the answer so quickly. I guess what Ran said about you was true," she ruffled his hair again, "You really are a clever boy."

'Sugoi!' Shinichi thought, clearly impressed, 'That was some quick thinking.' Conan smiled, "Arigato Kasuma-neechan!"

Kasuma smiled and scanned the store for Ran who, very timidly, was searching through a bucket of assorted sweatshirts. Kasuma groaned, "Ran'd better not pick something from _there_ for him." She rushed over to Ran, locked her arm around Ran's, and, fairly swiftly, dragged Ran to a different section. Conan rushed over to the two along with Sonoko who was taking her sweet time in reaching the others.

Kasuma let go of Ran and pushed her toward a collection of different colored shirts and pants. Ran stared at her companion with a tortured expression but Kasuma merely replied with a light, but slightly evil smile. 'Wow, Kasuma can be really scary. Worse than Ran… and that's saying something.' Co—Shinichi thought.

Kasuma helped Ran search through the racks pulling out pairs she found 'flattering' though how she'd know this was beyond anyone in the small group. 'She hasn't even seen a picture of me and she seems to have an idea on what would 'look good' on me.' Shinichi smirked.

A small snicker escaped one of the girls' lips. Conan looked up and found a blushing Ran, a grinning Kasuma, and a snickering Sonoko. The reason for their reaction, the object Kasuma was holding up: Shirt. Green in color with a very, and I mean _very_ vivid arrangement of colors. Hawaiian styled, the piece had lots of different colors (bright colors), all splattered with flowers of different size and style. Ran's expression said it all: 'That does _NOT_ belong in the men's department, please take it away.'

Conan found himself blushing for the third and, hopefully, the last time that day. 'Shit, if this keeps up, Kasuma will be on my tail.' Shinichi thought, dismayed but also slightly amused at Kasuma's antics.

Kasuma caught Conan's eyes and held them for a brief minuet before smirking and tossing the atrocity back into the pile that had easily become a discarded heap. Before long she had narrowed it down to three shirts: one blue, one red, and one white. All simple in design but at the same time, all different. The blue shirt adorned a soccer emblem (don't ask me how she knew about his interest in soccer, she just somehow knew) white in color. The red shirt held black and white stripes along the bottom of the shirt and along the sleeve. While, the white shirt bore blue and green stripes decorating the middle and top of the shirt. Kasuma looked up at Ran who was staring intently at the red shirt. Kasuma instantly discarded the red piece of clothing, "I have a feeling you've already given him something red."

The response from the other two girls; outright shock and astonishment. Kasuma took that has a 'how did you know' and nodded, looking back and forth at the remaining two. "You're a male," she looked at Conan, "Which of these two do you think Shinichi should get? Blue or white?"

"For Shinichi-niisan? Uh, I guess they would both be fine demo… shouldn't you be asking Ran-neechan not me. She's known Shinichi-niisan _much_ longer than I have."

"I guess you're right," Kasuma shrugged, "Ran? What do you think, blue or white? You can do it, there's only a fifty-fifty chance you'll get it wrong."

"Um… Blue?" Ran suggested quietly.

Kasuma imitated a buzzer sound, "Wrong, seriously Ran, you _need_ to work on this." She made her final discard and folded up the white shirt, "Now… for matching pants."

"Ka-su-ma!" Ran exclaimed, "Shinichi doesn't need a pair of matching pants!"

"Yes he does, don't you think Conan-kun?" Kasuma asked, another smirk appearing.

"Kasuma, do you _have_ to bring the kid into this?" Sonoko asked.

Conan regarded Kasuma, "Uh… hai?"

Kasuma smiled, "Well then, it's settled."

Ran groaned but followed anyway, 'Gomen nasai Ran.' Shinichi smiled.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

July 16, 6:52 AM

_I RATHER LIKE IT HERE IN Japan. MY FIRST WEEK HERE HAS MADE ME FEEL SO WELCOME. I'VE DECIDED TO HANG AROUND HERE SO I CAN STAY AND PLAY WITH YOU CHIBITANTEI-KUN. –Double M_

_P.S- TO FIND OUT ABOUT ME, I SUGGEST YOU SEARCH THE INTERNATIONAL WANTED LIST._

Conan sat on the bed in a guest room of Dr. Agasa's house, watching as the professor scanned a small piece of paper then referred to the tab on the computer. The Professor's hand slid across the keys joined by a soft tapping sound. Conan laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling pondering yet another note from the mysterious 'Double-M'. "Its strange doc; in this note, this 'Double-M' person actually _wants_ us to find out about him. A thief normally doesn't want to reveal himself. They always want to lay low." Conan sighed and sat up, gazing intently at the Professor.

"Reminds me of another thief I've heard of." Professor Agasa replied. He scanned the screen, then the paper. "Alright, Shin-chan, I'm in the International Wanted List."

Conan jerked to his feet, "Anything about Double-M?" he asked, excitement arousing.

The Professor shook his head, "There is no such criminal, was there anything else this guy addressed himself as. Think back, Shinichi."

Just then Haibara Ai walked out of the basement by way of stairs. Wearing her usual white lab coat she replied, "1412."

Conan scoffed, "Baka, KID has nothing to do with this."

"Fine, then how about 0532?" Ai suggested.

"0-5-3-2?" –lightbulb flash- "Of course, in the first letter!"

"This so-called 'Double-M' probably found out about you not being able to find his identity so he sent you a bigger hint." Ai stated.

"Doc," Conan turned, "Try 0532, this site should also be adaptable with ID numbers."

Doctor Agasa punched in the designated numbers. Nothing came up, "Nani?"

Ai smirked, "As to be expected; this person wouldn't outright give their ID number. And, knowing you were a detective, placed a riddle within the heist note. This kind of puzzle is probably an anagram. I'm just surprised this isn't from Kaito KID, he loves riddles—"

Conan tuned out all other sounds and focused on the first letter. 'Let's see…. It started out like: KONBANWA…'

'KONBANWA… AT LEAST IT WILL BE WHEN YOU GET THIS LETTER. LET'5 HAVE A PARTY T0 WELCOME MY RETURN TO THE RISING SUN. I3EFORE I 2ANCE AWAY WITH THE NIGHT.'

Conan rushed up to the computer and typed in four numbers. A profile appeared and, satisfied, selected the print option. Finally, Conan grabbed the printed pages and rushed out towards the Mouri Detective Agency.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

July 16, 7:28 AM

Conan raced up the stairs of the Mouri Detective Agency and opened the door, jumping up onto the Sleeping Sleuth's desk where Mouri Kogoro was watching a Yoko Okino drama… again. "Ne, Oji-san, have you heard of an international thief called Masked Magician?" Conan asked.

"Shhhh!!! Shut up kid." Mouri admonished, gorging down what seemed like his third helping of sake. "Can't you see I'm watching Yoko Okino's drama? Go bother someone else… like Ran.. or that other girl that's been comin' over recently."

"You mean Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked.

"Didn't I tell ya to SHUT UP!" Mouri yelled.

"Now what's going on her… Oh Conan-kun. I thought you were at something Agasa's house." Kasuma said, walking in carrying a fairly large box. "Did he drive you out or something?"

Conan shook his head, "I decided to come home early. What's in the box Kasuma-neechan?"

"Ran-san's present for Shi-ni-chi. Ran-san's too scared to wrap it herself." She smiled, "Ain't that cute? Kawaii?"

Kasuma set the present of the table and grabbed a marker, carefully beginning to write down the address of the Detective Agency. Once done with that, she pulled a sheet of paper and copied down the address written on it. Shinichi's address… 'Oh shit!' Conan inched foreword, "Uh, Kasuma-neechan, Shinichi-niisan isn't at home, he hasn't been for a while. Ran-neechan keeps saying stuff about him being on a big case oversees."

"I know. Ran-san won't stop blabbing about it. So… when Shinichi-kun comes back to visit, he'll have a present from Ran-san waiting for him…" Kasuma smiled, "You're blushing again Conan-kun. Don't want someone stealing your girl?"

"NO! Chigau," Conan shook his head. Conan ran back up to Mouri's desk, "Oji-san, can I go and visit Megure-kebu?"

"Yeah, yeah, just don't bother me." Mouri brushed off.

"Arigato!" Conan said, running out the door with Kasuma watching him go with a quiet but stern face.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Police Headquarters

July 16, 7:47 AM

"Um, Megure-kebu, have you heard of an international thief called Masked Magician 235?" Conan asked timidly.

"Conan-kun? Why the sudden talk of thieves?" Inspector Megure asked.

"Well, I heard Heiji-niisan mumbling about a thief named Masked Magician and I was just curious." Conan smiled. "Have you heard of him?"

"Well, I've heard a little about a figure calling himself Masked Magician, but I don't have much information on him. Heck, I don't even know if he's a he!" Inspector Megure exclaimed.

"What _do_ you know about him, Heiji-niisan wanted me to ask you?" Conan asked, a tone of child-like seriousness appearing.

"Why doesn't Hattori-kun just ask his father about this guy?" Conan shrugged. "Oh well, pretty much what I know is that this Masked Mage's gender isn't known yet, he/she gets places using a pair of silk-like wings that act like hang-gliders. As the name suggests, this guy's an extraordinary magician whose skills could rival the Kaito KID's. Some quirks this guy likes to pull would be sending his heist notes several weeks in advance, I suppose he likes to give all the officers time to fret as well as time to prepare. When he _does_ appear, he is never wearing the same thing twice. The only article that remains the same is his (or her) long white cape. And when I say never the same thing twice, I mean it, even when it comes to hair, it's always different. A master of disguise as well a trickery and just as slippery as KID; this thief is insanely similar to Kaito KID, one of the similarities being he _always_ returns the stolen object to the family he stole from. The difference between the returning process is that the stolen products are always found sitting on the edge of the family's house's chimney, and always after a full or sometimes even a new moon. And that's about all I know Conan-kun. Do you think that'll help Hattori-kun?"

"Yes, that helps me plenty." A voice flitted into the Police Officer's office.

Two heads swiveled as the figure of Hattori Heiji was discovered. He walked foreword, his usual hat sat the wrong way on his head. He looked up, "Yo Ku—I mean Conan-kun."

"Sheesh, you really need to stop calling the kid Kudo, Heiji. What do you see in that boy anyway?" a second voice piped up.

Heiji turned and looked at his companion, Toyama Kazuha. "Ah, no, it's just that this lil' critter reminds me of Kudo… I've told you this before."

"Oh yeah… Kudo's hardly around anymore. Sometimes I wish he _were_ here tailing me endlessly." Inspector Megure sighed.

Conan laughed weakly, "Heiji-niisan is visiting Beika? Yay! This is gonna be fun," Conan gave Heiji a glare clearly displaying a message that said: You're dead, you know that right? "Oh, how about you show Megure-kebu that note from the Masked Mage you got a week ago."

"A-a WEEK ago?! Why was no one informed of this sooner! Masked Mage is coming? Why! He's never come to Japan."

Conan shrugged, "According to the letter that was faxed to Oji-san's machine, Masked Mage likes it here. He's decided to stay in the area."

"Why didn't you tell me anything about this Hattori-kun? Information about thieves should be reported." Inspector Megure scolded.

"Yeah, that's why I came here… This _is_ the city the heist will take place in. Oh, and I made copies of the heist note." Heiji sorted through a large bag on the floor. "Here, Megure-kebu… oh and Conan-kun, you can give this copy to Ran's Otou-san."

Heiji handed out the copies in which both receivers read the note.

"Oi, why doesn't this note have a date and time?" Inspector Megure asked.

"Well, ya see, funny story. Ya see I called the Mouri Detective Agency so I could talk to Oo-chan. Except, uh, he wasn't there and Conan here picked up the phone. So I thought what the heck, Conan-kun can relay the message to Oo-chan and I told him about the case. I guess the sender was nearby the Agency and saw Conan-kun talking to me so he decided to send me a second fax." Heiji pulled out another slip of paper and set it on Inspector Megure's desk before continuing. "Imagine my shock when I read that this guy had found out about my conversation. He said he'd say hi and that he'd send a fax to the Detective Agency where Conan-kun was. And guess what? A few minuets later, a fax came in on Conan-kun's side." Heiji looked down at the boy as he pulled out his own fax. "Just like the second fax to me said, the third note contained the date and time of his heist." Heiji laughed.

Inspector Megure frowned, "And how was that a funny story? Wait… why is Conan-kun referred in this letter as chibitantei-kun?"

"I was confused about that too," Heiji began. "But it makes sense I guess; I mean Conan-kun is staying with Ran-san and her father who's a famous detective. He probably just assumed that Conan-kun'd pick up something from being at all of those cases with the Sleeping Sleuth."

Conan glared at Heiji's smiling face. He then pulled out another piece of paper and plopped it onto the desk. "This was sent to the Detective Agency at midnight exactly. What's strange is how it's formatted; it's almost like a letter someone would supposedly send to a friend."

"_Are_ you two friends with this Masked Mage?" Inspector Megure asked, suspicion clouding his expression.

The two boys shook their heads. There then came a beeping sound from Inspector Megure's desk. The four people in the office stared at the incoming fax. Before the machine even finished spitting out the paper, Inspector Megure grabbed the sheet and read the contents. He then read aloud. "'Congratulations, detectives! You found out my identity, I applaud you. As everyone now knows, I will visit your interesting museum and grab a little souvenir on my way out. I would so love to meet you all officially so, I invite you as well and any guests you wish to bring along, the more the merrier I always say, right? Ja, I'll see you on the twenty-third of this month. From Masked Magician.'"

The officer passed it to Heiji who bent down to show Conan as well, "Hey, this person also included a caricature."

Kazuha and Inspector Megure leaned in to study the drawing, a pair of white wings with a shining gem in the middle. The gem was covered in thin branches and was drawn so that, if you looked close enough, you would see a smaller image of a pair of wings sitting in the middle of the gem. Conan looked at the top of the page, "There's no fax machine number. Which means—"

"Masked Magician has his own portable fax machine-like object. It allows him to send messages wherever he happens to be. But that also means we won't be able to track him as easily as we could." Heiji finished.

"Right," Conan nodded.

The fax machine beeped again and Inspector Megure groaned, "Not again! This guy really likes faxes."

Conan and Heiji looked at the incoming fax. As the first line appeared, the two detectives looked at each other. Conan smiled and nodded. As more and more lines appeared, Kazuha looked at the note and said, "It's KID isn't it Heiji?"

"Ah," Heiji confirmed.

Conan tugged at the paper and pulled it out of the printer, "He decided not to use a riddle this time. It says: 'I've decided to reappear at Beika Museum and steal the Phantom at midnight."

Heiji grabbed the paper out of Conan's hand, "Is this 'Phantom' what I think it is?"

"The Night Phantom jewel. It's what the Masked Mage is after too. Hm, two phantom thieves after the same jewel. That's going to end badly." Conan mused.

Suddenly Conan's head snapped up and he looked around anxiously. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he bolted out the door and ran outside with Heiji on his heel. Conan clutched his Solar-Powered Skateboard and looked behind him at Heiji. "You noticed it too?"

"Yeah, a sudden feeling of being watched."

"Oi, Kudo, be subtle about it but there's someone watching us on the rooftop across the street. He's wearing all white."

"What?!"

Three things happened right then: 1) The person on the roof, maybe KID, scrambled up to his feet, 2) Conan jumped onto Heiji's motorcycle behind the teen, and 3) both high-school detectives caught a glimpse of the fleeing face. Something white: a mask bearing a sequence of dots colored red at the place where the hairline would be and trailing down the sides of the mask while also fading down into a bright yellow at the chin. The eye slots were lined with a vivid, thick blue strip, easily causing the eyes to stand out. Above the eyes were six curved, green lines, starting fairly short on the inside and gradually getting longer as they extended outward. Right in the middle sat a painted-on nose colored purple. A straight, black line stood in for the mouth.

The motorcycle engine revved up and, seconds later, began the chase. Conan kept an eye glued on the fleeing figure, watching as the cape and hair blew fiercely in the wind. "That was Masked Mage!" Heiji exclaimed. "Does that mean he's a she?"

Conan's head shook underneath the helmet, "Not necessarily. Masked Mage never wears the same thing twice, meaning, this will be the first and last time we see him/her in white with a blonde wig."

"Damn, that snake. Trying to make our lives harder," Heiji swore.

Conan looked back up at the thief just in time to see him (or her) pull out a gun-like object, stop several rooftops ahead of the two boys, and shoot. Heiji's eyes widened as the object approached and jerked the handlebars to the left to swerve out of the way. Seconds before the bike collapsed, Conan saw the thief's mask crack from a different small object as the person tripped and fell off the roof.

Conan and Heiji got off the bike and watched as the ball that was shot at them exploded, leaving behind a column of purple smoke and a small strip of paper that said: Konnichiwa.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Alleyway

July 16, 8:30 AM

Masked Magician 235 slipped as what seemed to be a playing card struck his/her mask. Instead of falling to certain doom, someone from below caught him/her neatly. "Why the hell did you shoot at me?" an angry, muffled voice demanded.

"Simple, I wanted to know why you shot at those tantei." Came the answering purr.

"I'm not sure why you want to know Kaito KID but fine, I'll tell you." 235 placed a hand on the bottom of the mask and broke the already cracked mask, revealing 235's mouth. 235 spoke again with a now clear voice, "The ball I shot has a message I wanted to deliver to those two and those two alone. And so, two minuets from now, it will burst into flames. Nothing big of course but it will ensure safety." 235 smiled, "I hear you're also after Night Phantom. I expect to see you there, don't disappoint me. Oh, and don't expect to see me in this form ever again. I'll see you around, Kaito KID." 235 dropped the mask fragment and jumped up onto the roof, activating a hidden pair of wings that was neatly concealed behind his/her cape and flew off.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Alleyway

July 16, 8:33 AM

Conan and Heiji rounded the corner of the alley to the place where the Masked Mage was supposed to be. Instead, the detectives found the bottom fragment of the Magician's mask sitting facedown on the pavement. Conan bent down and picked up the mask fragment with a white cloth that had been resting inside his pocket then scrutinized it. Heiji bent down and studied the small piece, "So this is one of the two things Masked Magician doesn't change. Huh, I thought it'd be fancier."

"Maybe he _does_ have a fancier one." Conan suggested, "You think we should give this to Megure-kebu? Or do we hang onto it?"

The two boys walked out of the alley and down to where the fallen motorcycle was. Heiji bent down and pulled the bike back up in order to wheel it down the street with Conan at his side. Heiji sighed, "What's wrong with this thief anyway? He didn't have to shoot at us to give us that one word. Why didn't he just say it to our faces?"

"That's probably part of the problem, if Masked Mage got too close to us, he might be in jail right about now. Who in their right mind would let an international thief who was standing right in front of you get away?" Conan sighed, "This week's gonna take forever to pass, especially if Masked Mage keeps this up. He gonna end up wearing us out even before the heist date comes."

"Hey Hattori-kun!" a female voice called out. Heiji looked up where his eyes landed on Ran, Kazuha, Sonoko, and…

"Oi, Kudo. Who's the other brown haired girl?"

"Kazuha?" Conan asked.

"Idiot. I mean the other one… besides Ran or Kazuha."

"Probably Kasuma. She's been hanging out with Ran a lot recently. And if you ask me, I think she's getting closer to figuring out that something's wrong with me. She's so _damn_ observant." Conan mumbled.

Kasuma, Ran, and Kazuha ran foreword and met up with the boys. All three girls looked up and down the two of them, Ran and Kazuha frowning. Although it was Kasuma who spoke up, "Why are you too so dirty? Did ya trip or something?"

"Something like that," Heiji grumbled. "Damn thief."

"HEIJI!" Ran exclaimed, "Don't use that language around Conan-kun!"

Heiji didn't answer but instead ran his eyes over the unfamiliar person in the group. "She a transfer student?"

"Who me?" Kasuma pointed to herself, "Yeah. And you're from Osaka I assume."

"How… never mind." Heiji kicked his motorcycle with frustration.

Kasuma stared at Conan, then behind her where the Police Headquarters happened to be. Though Conan expected Kasuma to address him with a question or two, nothing happened. 'That's odd; she always tends to speak up, no matter where we are.' Shinichi thought.

Shrugging it off, Conan examined that mask fragment in his hand, gazing at the lines (or dots) of the yellow and black paint. Again, Kasuma looked at Conan but, this time she decided to speak up, "Oh, Conan-kun. You must be hungry," Conan looked up at Kasuma with a confused look. "C'mon, I'll take you to a restaurant I went to a while ago." Kasuma lightly grabbed Conan's hand.

"Do you want us to go with you Kasuma? We can split the money." Ran advised.

Kasuma shook her head, "I'll be fine with Conan-kun here. You should take Kazuha and her boyfriend to a nice place to eat."

Both of the Osaka residents flushed, "WE ARE NOT DATING!!" the two of them yelled simultaneously.

Kasuma smirked, "_Sure_ you aren't," she added sarcastically. She looked down at Conan, "C'mon Conan-kun. I know the _perfect_ place."

Conan looked back at Heiji, who seemed to have a hard time containing both his laughter and embarrassment, with a pleading look. Heiji just smiled and waved back to the faux first-grader. Conan looked up at Kasuma, "Where are we going Kasuma-neechan?" he asked as innocently as he could.

"We're going to a restaurant like I said earlier." She looked down at the boy, "Is something wrong Conan-kun?"

Conan shook his head, 'Shit. Where's she taking me? She couldn't have figured out about me _that_ easily.' Conan looked up at Kasuma who was humming an unfamiliar song. Kasuma stopped in front of a fancy looking restaurant. A small gasp escaped Conan's lips, "But Kasuma-neechan. This place is _so_ expensive."

Kasuma smiled and walked in, requesting a booth in the back of the restaurant. "It's alright. I've got a good paying job. You know, when you're old enough to get a job, you should get a job at a mall, their pay is pretty good. Just make sure you don't grow up to be a juvenile delinquent, in that case, it'd be pretty hard to keep a job." Kasuma smirked, "Unless you end up getting a self-employed job, I guess in that case you'd have more leniency."

Conan whimpered quietly, 'And what if I _do_ end up as a delinquent?' Shinichi retorted.

Kasuma sat down and handed Conan a copy of the menu who was also seated. There was silence between the two as they looked through the contents of the menu. After a few minuets passed Kasuma looked up, "Have you figured out what you want Conan-kun?"

Conan nodded, "I'm ready. Demo… Kasuma-neechan, is it really okay, I mean, this place is _so_ expensive."

Kasuma smiled, "Its fine Conan-kun, I don't mind. Besides, it's nice to go out to a fancy restaurant every once in a while, don't you think."

"I guess so," Conan mumbled as Kasuma waved a waiter over.

A tall, burly man approached the pair, "Are you two ready to order?" he asked pleasantly.

"Yeah, let's see. I'll have the Four-cheese Lasagna. How 'bout you Conan-kun?"

Conan looked at the menu again, "Um, I'll have the Spinach Tortellini."

A waiter nodded in approval, "Wonderful choices. And would you like any drinks, ma'am?"

Kasuma shook her head, "Just water," she looked at Conan, "Would you like some orange juice Conan-kun?"

'I'm not a kid,' Shinichi thought, slightly annoyed. "Sure!" Conan nodded happily.

"Alright, so one Four-cheese Lasagna, Spinach Tortellini, water, and orange juice. Correct?" the waiter clarified.

"That's right," Kasuma nodded.

The waiter walked away and left Conan and Kasuma alone to talk freely, "What did you want to talk about Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked, masking his sudden worry.

"Hm, I'm not sure… I guess I was just curious." Kasuma murmured.

'Shit, here it comes.' Shinichi thought grimly. "What are you curious about?" Conan asked. 'Did she figure me out already?'

"I don't know. Most of the time it's just a strange feeling in the pit of my gut but…. Sometimes I wonder if something's bothering you or if you're hiding something important. If it's the latter, you can always talk about it. And… if it's the former, well," Kasuma smirked. Not an action to be worried about, just… well, almost like a concerned smirk. She laughed it off, "Well, I guess you could talk about _that_ too. Sometimes you look as if someone's chasing you."

Conan's eyes widened, 'Heh, close enough.' Conan shook his head, "Impossible! Nothing like that's happening to me, honestly."

Kasuma's eyes narrowed, "It _is_ possible. There_ are_ such things as stalkers." A waiter came by with their food and drinks. Kasuma was silent for a minute. Suddenly she smiled, "I guess I'm just being paranoid. Why would anyone want to stalk a cute boy like you?" Kasuma leaned across the table and ruffled Conan's hair. She then picked up a fork and knife and began to eat. Conan followed and the next few minuets were silent except for the silverware scraping the plate or the ice clanging against the sides of the glasses.

Conan took a sip of his juice and glanced at the high-school girl across from him. She was silently chewing her food while looking out the window. 'A stalker's saying it _nicely_. How much has she figured out?' Conan sighed, 'For her sake, I hope she _doesn't_ put two and two together. Some people just don't know what they're getting into.'

Conan leaned back in his seat and fiddled with the skateboard next to him. Kasuma paused and looked at the boy. "Are you done Conan-kun. Do you want to go back to Ran-san's place?"

Conan looked up, "Uh, I guess so. Are _you_ done Kasuma-neechan?" Conan returned.

Kasuma smiled and looked inside the small folder that a waiter had placed on the table. She swiveled in her seat and looked through her purse, satisfied with whatever she came into contact with. Kasuma pulled out a small white wallet and opened it up, pulling a small bundle of bills and setting it inside the folder before closing it and placing it back on the table. She smiled, "That should be enough of a tip." She faced Conan, "Let's go Conan-kun."

"Hai!" Conan exclaimed, getting up and grabbing his skateboard. The two of them walked outside and started walking down the road towards the Detective Agency. "Kasuma-neechan?"

Kasuma looked down, "Yes? What is it?"

"Are you _really_ going to send that box to Shinichi-niisan? I mean to his _house_?" Conan asked, blushing slightly.

Kasuma smiled, "Silly, I already sent it. I delivered it myself. I thought maybe Ran-san was lying when she said Shinichi hadn't been there in was it a year she said? Anyway, I went to check myself. I didn't think that huge place would be so, well… un-orderly! A family _that_ rich well…" Kasuma snickered, "Who knew Ran-san's boyfriend was so rich! Heh, that sounds a little mean. I guess I never imagined her with some rich kid."

Conan blushed harder, "I think Ran-neechan said that Shinichi-niisan's father is a writer and his mother is, err, _was_ a famous actress."

"Oh?" Kasuma frowned slightly, "I guess that would explain the money." She shrugged, "Anyway, I opened the gate—didn't think it would be open—and hid it behind a small bundle of rose bushes. If anyone passes by, they won't, at least, see a bright red present sitting by the door."

They approached the Detective Agency and Kasuma waved and continued down the street to where her own home was. When Kasuma was out of sight, Conan revved up the skateboard in his hand and set it down, jumping on and heading towards his old home.

Several blocks (and minuets later) Conan hopped off the skateboard and paused outside the Kudo residence. He set the skateboard against the wall and walked to the gate, opening it as quietly as he could but failing as the gate made a rather loud creak as it opened. 'Note to self: Bring some oil next time you decided to visit your own home.' Conan ran up the narrow pathway and swerved to his left and to where the roses rested. Conan looked behind the bushes and caught sight of a fairly large present covered with a, just like Kasuma said, bright red wrapping paper. Smiling, Conan picked it up and walked back down the pathway, turning the corner and walking inside the neighboring Agasa residence.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Museum

July 23, 11:50 PM

Ran, Conan, Heiji, Kazuha, and Mouri stepped out of the car Mouri had rented and walked toward the entrance of the Beika Museum where Inspectors Megure, Nakamori, and Shiratori, along with Detectives Sato and Takagi were waiting. Mouri looked around the entrance of the museum, more specifically, at the members of both the Task Force and the Beika Police Force. He turned to Megure, "Is this enough people Megure-kebu? A mean, we _are_ dealing with not just one but _two_ phantom thieves."

Nakamori piped up, "It's _never_ enough. No matter how many officers we place, KID always seems to bypass them _all_. And now we've got _two_ of them to worry about. That means double the trouble!"

Conan cocked his head and looked at Inspector Nakamori, "Ne, Nakamori-kebu, does it really matter how many people are _outside_? What we should be worried about is the amount of people _inside_ the museum. How many people _are_ in the museum?"

Mori turned on Conan and gave him a good wacking on the head, "Stupid boy." He mumbled.

"The kid's got a point. If there are a certain amount of people inside the building, we'll know immediately if any of the thieves get in. Well, Nakamori-kebu?" Inspector Megure asked.

"Uh, well let's see. There's me, Megure-kebu, Sato-san, Takagi-kun, Shiratori-kun, Mouri-san, Ran-san, Hattori-kun, Kazuha-chan, and Conan-kun…. So ten people."

"Alright, as long as no other officer or person for that matter gets in, then the gem will definitely stay safe." Inspector Megure announced.

"Um, Megure-kebu, where exactly _is_ the jewel?" Heiji asked.

"Right, Nakamori-kebu, lead the way."

Nakamori nodded. He led the group into the museum and through a series of hallways to a glass cased room with a black jewel in the center. Heiji leaned down, "Oi, this museum itself is like a maze, what are the odds of KID and Masked Mage getting lost in here?"

"Zero," Conan whispered. "They wouldn't be _that_ careless. Those two would have most likely researched the place to find every kink in the building. Even the best security system probably wouldn't catch them… especially if they decide to work together."

"Baka. KID works alone and most likely Masked Mage does too." Heiji's voice rose slightly.

"Yeah but they both have a common goal… That Night Phantom over there." Conan pointed out, facing the black jewel.

Heiji bent down and studied the gem, "What's so special about this thing anyway?"

"Other than the money? Who knows." Conan shrugged. "Not like they'll use the gem for money, they'd return it."

"Still don't get why they'd return it." Heiji mumbled. He looked down at his watch, "It's almost midnight."

"Ah," Conan nodded. Conan turned when he heard static emitting from a hand-held radio. In fact, everyone turned to the sound. Inspector Megure picked up the radio from his belt clasp and answered, "What is it?"

A police officer's voice rang through the speaker, "KID has just been spotted on the roof of the neighboring building though he's not doing anything. It seems he's surveying the place."

Inspector Megure nodded, "Alright, keep an eye on him, we still haven't seen the Masked Mage. He could already be in the crowd or, worse, inside the building. Keep your eyes peeled."

The connection cut off and all of the officers save Sato, Nakamori, and Shiratori ran outside to survey the matter. Heiji bent down and whispered in Conan's ear, "Is it possible the KID out there is a fake?"

Conan frowned, "It's _highly_ likely. Of course, we don't know how Masked Mage will try to get in here but as long as we have a small amount of people inside, we'll be ready."

Heiji looked around nervously then back at Conan, "I have this strange feeling that one or both of them are already in the building."

Conan shrugged, "Then I guess we'll have to be extra cautious."

The clock struck midnight. Heiji and Conan exchanged glances, "Oi, Kud—"

"Shhh!" Conan silenced him. Conan then skipped over to Detective Sato, "Sato-keiji?"

The detective looked down at the boy, "Yes Conan-kun?"

"Um, I was just curious, where are your handcuffs?"

Sato looked down at her belt then laughed quietly, "I guess I must have left them in the police car. I guess that was a mistake on my part. Should have made sure I had a second pair I guess."

"Are you sure your handcuffs aren't being used to secure the _real_ Sato-keiji to a post maybe in this very building?" Conan asked, eyes narrowing.

Heiji ran foreword, "Ku-I mean Conan. What brought up this?"

Nakamori stepped foreword, "Sato-san isn't tied up somewhere. I made sure myself that this was the real Sato-san."

"Really? It's just that, Oji-san happened to park right next to Sato-keiji's car but, when I happened to get a glimpse inside, there were no handcuffs. I remember you mentioning something about always having a second pair of handcuffs because your original pair was getting old. I think you said they were your father's. So, why don't you have a second pair?" Conan's eyes narrowed again, "It's because you're not the real Sato-keiji. Right KID? Or maybe it's Masked Magician."

Detective Sato smiled, then grabbed a small object from her pocket and threw it on the ground. Instantly the room was filled with thick, black smoke and when the smoke cleared, there stood, not Detective Sato, but the Masked Magician. "Good job boy, you saw right through my disguise. I didn't think something as small as an extra pair of handcuffs would give me away that easily. It's true, the real Sato-san is tied up in a bathroom stall several floors above us."

Inspector Nakamori stared at the thief in shock, "Th-then, how did you pass my test?!"

Though the Mage's face was covered by the mask, the smile was clear, "Easy, I only switched _after _you administered your 'test.' I switched places with her as she was securing the perimeter of the top two floors." The Mage shrugged, "I was already in the air vents, it was just a matter of patience." Masked Mage jumped up and flipped toward the center of the room, his/her mask gleaming under the light. Masked Mage landed lightly on top of the case and paused, pulling a pair of white gloves and slipping them on. Masked Mage flicked the purple wig behind the glimmering mask and readjusted the light purple suit he had on. As the Magician spoke again, the occupants could notice the brief wavering of his voice from a deep male tone to a higher register female voice. "My, my. My stay here in Japan will be so much fun."

The lights blacked out. There was a brief rustling of fabric as, most likely the KID, entered the room. Almost immediately after that, there was the sound of cracking glass coming from the middle of the room. "Damn it!" Nakamori growled, "One of them has got the gem! Quick, find them."

There was another crack of glass followed this time by KID's soft purr. "I'm terribly sorry for the intrusion officers, but I've got a gem to steal. I do hope we get to meet up again soon."

The lights flickered back on. Conan scrambled to his feet and ran to where he heard the glass break: the doors leading to the stairs. Conan ran through the hole followed closely by Heiji and flew up the stairs. Both boys caught a glimpse of a white cape retreat through the door leading to the roof, "Damn, we have to hurry Kudo or they'll make past the helicopters!"

Conan pushed open the door just as KID was about to activate his hang-glider. "KID!"

KID turned, meeting the detectives' eyes and smiling. "Sadly, detectives, I don't have much time to stay and chat."

Conan flicked open his stun-gun wrist-watch and aimed it at KID. "Now, now boy, there's no need for weapons." A very familiar female voice said smoothly.

"Kazuha?" Heiji asked.

Masked Magician laughed, "Like it? It took me a while to get the right pitch but I guess that was it." Masked Magician said while switching into another female voice, "Isn't that right…" the Mage looked at Conan with clear, blue eyes. "Shi-ni-chi?"

'Ran,' Shinichi thought, eyes widening.

Masked Mage laughed again, "I did a good job on Mouri-san's voice too, I can tell." The thief sighed while tossing the Night Phantom lightly into the air. "I'll have to try that disguise someday. _Both_ of them," the Mage looked at Heiji then shrugged. Masked Magician looked down at his 'watch' and gasped, "Well, would you look at that. I'm late, I'm late…"

"Don't even _try_ finishing that sentence." Conan hissed.

"_Well_, impatient little tantei I see." The thief folded his/her arms across his/her chest. "Not letting me enjoy my childhood filled with Disney."

A hang-glider appeared, followed by a pair of silk-like wings and both thieves jumped into the air and flew—or glided, which ever way you wish to look at it— away.

**Final Notes: Yatta! First chapter done! ooh! (There's some implied RanShin **** in here but since I suck at romance stories, that's about all that's gonna come out of my work) So, how did you like it? Please let me know what you think of it (through R&R's *cough, hint, cough*) And feel free to give title suggestions (though it seems there's a title, I want to add something possibly after 'Double-M and Kaito KID vs. Conan') Reviews make authors happy which makes more chapters!**


	3. Amethyst Purple (2)

**A/N: Hey all, here's the long awaited (or maybe not) second chapter for my new story :) Hmm, I wonder if anyone can find the pattern I've placed in this story. As for updates, I will try to post the next chapter/s sometime during the following week (or two). But, of course, with sports and homework and such, (plus any lame writer's blocks that may decide to visit) I cannot give any guarantees but I will try my best to make it by my deadline. (If I can't, then please forgive me!)**

**Warnings: To any and all Harry Potter fans who might be reading this, please don't kill me (and I don't own) (there's a small comment directed to JK Rowling some of you may not like) I respect all Harry Potter fans (and their opinions) and don't mean to insult the author of these books. It's just Kasuma's character that leads her to say/do the things she does. Also, the Latin in this chapter is a bit fuzzy translation wise. It's my first year taking it so sorry about the roughness. This story may turn into a RanShin fic depending on how well I can actually write a romance fic :)**

**Acknowledgements: Arigato to ysabet and nightengale's story Three Thieves for giving me the idea for an internet chat concept. Also... arigato, salamat, gracias, gratia to my first reviewers 1412 karasu and DCMonkey4EVR! Reviews are amazing!  
**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): You know what I think? I think writer's blocks should die. I think I will murder it. That is one satsujin jiken (murder case) I wouldn't mind overlooking. **

**(Sorry, that was a lot)

* * *

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Double-M and Kaito KID vs. Conan: Amethyst Purple

* * *

Beika, Japan

Rooftop of the Beika Museum

July 24, 12:17 AM

"Damn it!" Heiji cussed as he ran foreword, grasping at nothing but air. He whirled around and looked for anything out of the ordinary, "Slippery thief."

Conan looked at the rooftop floor, "Heiji… under your foot. There's a piece of paper there."

"Huh?" Heiji looked down and picked up the piece of purple stationary. "It's from Masked Mage. 'WELL, THAT WAS FUN, WASN'T IT? LET'S DO THIS AGAIN SOMETIME. HOW ABOUT FIVE DAYS FROM NOW WITHIN THE WALLS OF THE UNPREDICTABLE BLUE. BEFORE THE LANDSCAPE I WILL APPEAR, DURING THE THIRD NIGHTWATCH. FROM Masked Mage DBS… P.S- ESTIS PROMPTUS SPERARE SALUTO A SUBITUS'" Heiji tousled his hair, "What da hell is that supposed to mean?"

Conan grabbed the note, "It's more complex that the first sequence of notes we got from Masked Mage. And what's with the DBS after the signature?" He brushed a hand through his hair and sighed.

"Let's see… five days from now would be the twenty eighth." Heiji mumbled.

Conan looked at his watch, "Iie, it would be the twenty ninth. It's already past midnight." Conan looked up at a yawning Heiji, "By the way," his eyes narrowed. "When are you going back to Osaka?"

Heiji looked down at the boy, "Oi, what's with that hostile look? It's not like I'm permanently moving in with you or anything." Heiji smiled, "I made sure to bring enough clothes for at least a week, with some spares… especially because I always seem to get into really big cases when I'm around you."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean," Conan asked, any and all traces of his childish tone disappearing from sight.

Heiji smiled, "Anyway," he said, changing to subject, "Let's get back down and show this to Megure-kebu."

"Right," Conan nodded. The two boys walked down the stairs and met up with the other detectives (and Ran and Kazuha) outside the museum. Ran and Kazuha had found Detective Sato handcuffed in the ladies bathroom on the top floor and, with the help of a spare key, freed the female detective from her restraints. It seemed as if Detective Sato was still in shock at the fact that the Masked Magician had a disguise of her stashed away to use for this heist. When Conan and Heiji reached the rest of the people that were inside the museum, they had heard Detective Sato fuming silently at the insane antics the thief had pulled. Conan ran up to the detective, "Sato-keiji, how did the Masked Mage handcuff you?"

Detective Sato paused and looked at Conan. She sighed, "He or she faltered with the voice that was being used and I was able to pick up on it easily enough but, when I tried to attack the Mage, my attempts were blocked… almost _too_ easily. His counterattack caught me off-guard and that's pretty much how he captured me." Detective Sato growled, "I still can't believe he got through so easily. Must be an expert in martial arts or something like that."

"Oh, I see." Conan faced Inspector Megure, "Megure-kebu, there was another letter from Masked Magician found on the roof of the museum."

Inspector Megure grabbed the paper out of Conan's small hands and stared at the paper. He sighed and passed it to the other officers, "Looks like Masked Mage isn't keeping to his original delivery method."

Heiji looked at the paper, "He doesn't work like this?"

Inspector Nakamori shook his head, "Of course, he works by letter but it's the time frame he's changed. Normally Masked Mage gives the authorities about two weeks of preparation, not five days."

"He probably doesn't _want_ to give us that much time. He may want to keep us on our guards." Inspector Shiratori mused.

"Well, it can't be helped. We'll just have to be ready in five days and pray that we have the riddle solved." Detective Sato shrugged.

* * *

Internet

Instant Messenger via World Wide Web

July 24, 2:41 AM

_kk-kk8: Al right, enough jokes from me… how'd they get you?_

_d0r0b0r0s: one word: fire… those bastards don't give a damn on who da hell goes up, just so long as their 'mission' is complete. They also got my lil brother, he was 'bout 10…so around the age of r 'chibitantei-kun'. I just happened 2 b gone when it happened. Of all people… they got an innocent child. My parents were scientists, as u could probably guess, who decided 2 rebel. Didn't really work, they found their…_our_ hideout and set the place on fire. I was gettin' medicine at a pharmacy nearby and there were no housemaids or _any_ house staff 4 dat matter so my bro had 2 stay at home. I think u can infer the rest…. Srry, may b a bit personal but.. how 'bout u?_

_kk-kk8: yeah, that _is_ a bit personal but it's fair enough. Here's a math equation 4 u- add 1 world famous magician n a gun n what do u get?_

_d0r0b0rs: srry 4 askin…. Subject change. Did u like my riddle? Do u think they'll get it?_

_kk-kk8: the Japanese part.. yes. The latin part, maybe. Tho I wouldn't b surprised if chibitantei-kun solved it. He seems to know the most obscure things._

_d0r0b0r0s: oh… and about him. What happened?_

_kk-kk8: not sure. All I really know is who did that 2 him; u and I also know them_

_d0r0b0r0s: hm, that's horrible. So he is the way he is b/c of what they did?_

_kk-kk8: yeah_

The keys paused as both of the conversers leaned back and reread the page. A smirk appeared on one of the two.

_d0r0b0r0s: guess I'll c u in 5 days._

A gray circle replaced the previous green dot as both conversers closed their respective computers and continued with their previous duties.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

July 24, 6:39 AM

Still sleepy and groggy-eyed, Conan rolled out of bed and slowly turned to look at the digital clock in the room. Slowly, he sat up and looked around the second floor office. 'Wait, what?' he thought, shocked suddenly. 'Oh, right. Since Heiji and Kazuha are staying with us for god knows how long, I said I'd sleep down here.'

His eyes skimmed the room, not looking for anything in particular. All there really was in the room was the usual furniture like Mouri's desk with the television sitting on top, the couches (one of which he was sleeping on), and a book light…. 'Book light!'

Conan jerked off the couch and looked closely at the small yellow light. Conan could see, very dimly but still visible, a figure reading a thick book. Was that Sherlock Holmes he saw? "Who's there?" Conan asked quietly.

A head flickered up and deep blue eyes froze on the sleepy boy, "Ohayo, Conan-kun, I'm sorry if I woke you." a female voice said apologetically.

"Kasuma-neechan? Why are you here, it's six thirty. What are you reading?"

The book in Kasuma's hand closed, "I woke up a little _too_ early to meet Ran-san here but I decided to come over early. Although, when I got here, the third floor door was locked so I came down here. I assume you forgot to lock the door. Anyway, about what I'm reading, it's Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. I found it at a bookstore and decided to read it. From that look on your face, I'm taking a stab and saying that you're a fan?"

Conan's rising smile dropped and he added sarcastically, "How you guess?"

Kasuma laughed, "Lucky!" Kasuma leaned back on the couch and stared at the door behind her. "Ne, Conan-kun. You should tell 'Sleeping Kogoro' to change the lock on his office door. I got in here _way_ too easily."

Conan's eyes widened, "You picked the lock? Doushite?"

There was a small sigh from Kasuma, "I don't know. Guess I didn't want to wait outside until Ran-san woke up." Kasuma turned off the book light and pulled out her cell phone. The light from her phone dimly lit up her face as she scanned the screen. Her eyebrows pulled into a frown, "I've got mail? From whom?"

Kasuma looked up briefly at Conan who was diverting his eyes to the buildings outside the window. She looked back down at the screen and typed a reply to the sender. Closing the phone, Kasuma looked at the window and then at Conan, "What's so interesting out there?"

Conan diverted again, "Nanimonai. I was just spacing out I guess." The boy laughed. "Are you going to wait for Ran-neechan down here?"

The girl shrugged. "I've got nothing else to do so, I guess so." She looked at the boy, "Why…" she emitted a gasp, "Are you trying to kick me out Conan-kun? I'm hurt." She placed a hand on her chest.

Conan shook his head, "N-no, I never said that! It's just that you can't really tell how long you'll have to wait."

Suddenly, there was a long bang from up above. Conan and Kasuma looked up at the ceiling. Without a second thought, Conan bolted out the door and ran up the stairs, taking a key from his pocket and unlocking the door. Kasuma came in seconds after Conan rushed in. "What happened?" Conan asked.

Kasuma flicked on the light switch on the wall and looked around. Heiji, Ran, and Kazuha walked out of their respective rooms, confused slightly. "What was that?" Kazuha asked.

Heiji yawned, "The alarm clock. Oo-chan fell out of bed because of it. That's probably what the sound was."

"What the hell!" came Mouri's voice from his room, "Who put this clock here?"

'Now I'm wide awake. _Thanks_ oji-san.' Conan thought, rubbing his eyes.

Ran looked at Conan, "I'm sorry, Conan-kun. Did we wake you up?"

Conan shook his head, "No, I was already up." He gasped, "Did you know Kasuma-neechan picked the lock of the office door. It was amazing. Sugoi!"

Heiji gave Conan a tired glare while Kazuha gasped, "You picked the lock?"

The 'intruder' shrugged, "The door up here was harder to open so I tried out the second floor door." She yawned, "At least I wasn't a burglar."

"Geez Kasuma," Ran groaned. She looked at Kasuma's outfit, "You're already ready? You didn't have to wake up early to meet us."

Kasuma shrugged it off, "I guess I was too wound up, so I woke up a little too early. It's fine."

Worry clouded Ran's face but she brushed it off and went back into her room to get dressed. When Ran had finished, Kazuha went through the same process. Soon all three girls were ready to go, "Conan-kun, would you like to come?" Kasuma asked.

Conan started to accept but Heiji stopped him, "No, Conan here is going to help me and oo-chan solve the Mage's message."

Ran and Kazuha had already descended the stairs and were waiting at the bottom when Kasuma shrugged and joined the other girls. Conan glared, "Jeez, why can't you solve it on your own? You want to give Kasuma even _more_ of a reason to suspect something fishy about me? Besides, why would a high school _detective_ want help from a first grader?"

"Fishy, fish… Sushi! Great idea," Heiji exclaimed.

"Next time we're out in public remember, I don't know you." Conan muttered.

Heiji smiled and snatched the Mage's note from off the table between the couches. He then looked at the creases in the paper, "You were up all night trying to solve it without me right?"

"Exaggeration." Conan mumbled, "But even if I did, I wouldn't have made much progress. Masked Mage is really trying to trick us now."

"So… you haven't got _any_ idea? At all?" Heiji pressed.

"Keep that up and I won't tell you anything." Conan mumbled. "The only thing we really know for sure is the date, July 29. Everything else has been placed into a riddle. Well and there's the Latin phrase in the PS."

"Seriously, since when did you learn Latin?" Heiji frowned.

"Never mind. Let's see," Conan looked at the bottom of the note, "Estis would be you be plural. Promptus is ready, sperare is to expect, salute would be visit, and a subitus is from the unexpected."

"Proper English Kudo," Heiji growled.

"It means: You be ready to expect a visit from the unexpected. Or: _Be_ ready to expect a visit from the unexpected. Is _that_ proper English for you?" Conan shot back.

Heiji waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah. Now what about the phrase 'Before the landscape'? What's that supposed to mean?"

"If I knew, I'd have said something." Conan retorted. He pulled his hand through his hair, "Nothing else makes sense."

A shrill beeping sound flooded up towards the third floor living room. Both boys looked up and outside the door. They looked at each other, their thoughts identical for once. Heiji was the first to enter the room on the second floor but Conan was the first at the fax machine. Conan pulled out the slip of paper and smirked, "I wonder how many other faxes Masked Mage will send to us."

Heiji read over Conan's shoulder, "'Think Japanese and Ancient Rome.'" He paused, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It must be about the rest of the note, like the location." Conan murmured. "But why does he want to give us hints about his heist?"

The fax machine beeped again. "Geez, another one?" Heiji picked up the printed paper and read it off, "'Curious? I'm just being generous. Double-M.'"

"Now there's no doubt in my mind, Masked Mage _must_ have a listening device in here somehow. Dirty rat," Conan hissed.

"Now, now, be nice. Double-M won't like it and may send another note." Heiji scolded.

"Urusei," Conan mumbled. He sighed and ruffled his hair, "Ancient Rome? How does that help?"

"All we need is the time and place." Heiji muttered, "'Unpredictable blue… could that be water?"

Conan looked at the paper, then at Heiji. He shrugged, "Guess so. And what's with the 'before the landscape' part of the riddle? What is that supposed to tell us?"

"Oi, Kudo, what's 'landscape' in Latin?" Heiji asked.

"Idiot, there wasn't any mention of Latin, just Japanese and Ancient Rome. Latin has no part in this part of the riddle." Conan mumbled.

"Okay fine, no Latin…. Landscape in Japanese would be…..keshiki." Heiji whispered.

"Isn't there a Keshiki family in Japan?" Conan asked. Conan picked up a magazine sitting on the desk in front of him and paged through it. He stopped on a page near the middle of the magazine and smirked, "Right here," he displayed the magazine page, "Keshiki family in Hokkaido. They're displaying their family heirloom in a museum there. As to be expected, it's a jewel…. An amethyst called Purple Tear."

"Idiot thief, he's going all the way to Hokkaido? Just for an amethyst? That's just stupid." Heiji exclaimed.

Conan shrugged and soon the two detectives continued the task of solving the riddle.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Station

July 24, 7:00 AM

Four girls waited quietly as the screen above them displayed arrival times for the trains. The trains running past and hissing to a full stop as passengers noisily stepped of the vehicle. With the train accepting new passengers, the girls squeezed their way inside a nearby car. Finding four empty seats, they sat down and waited. Ran looked out the window thoughtfully, "I wonder why Hattori-kun wanted Conan-kun to stay with him and Otou-san." She whispered.

"It's probably nothing, that brat tends to be very observant." Sonoko, who had met them at the station, brushed off.

"He _is_ very bright," Kazuha seconded. "It's kind 'a creepy, how he knows so much stuff."

Ran nodded, "Kasuma? What do yo—" she glanced at their fourth companion, who had a thick book open and was reading it intently, 'Kasuma?'

Kasuma looked up at the other three girls, "What do I what?"

Ran shook her head, "Uh, never mind. What are you reading?"

The girl smiled, "Guess."

"J. K. Rowling?" Ran suggested.

Kasuma closed the book (covering the title) and gasped, "Ran! You mock my reading tastes? I'm hurt." She pouted.

"I'm gonna guess that was wrong?" Ran added between a small smile, "Hint?"

"Your boyfriend seems to be a big fan." Kasuma stated, opening the book again to place a bookmark inside.

"Bo-boyfriend?" Kazuha stammered, "Since whe— oh, you're dating Shinichi! Finally!"

Ran blushed and diverted her eyes, "We are not dating, never have, never will!"

Kasuma snickered, "Yeah right, have more faith Ran-san. Shinichi will definitely ask you out. You two are perfect for each other." She looked at Ran, "You're blushing, I wonder why."

"Mou, Kasuma. Stop that!" Ran exclaimed, blushing harder. The only reply she got was a smile.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Kudo Residence

July 26, 9:06 AM

Five high school students and one faux eight year old walked inside the house that had been abandoned for at least a year carrying several cleaning utensils such as brooms (with, of course, a dustpan) and feather dusters in order to tidy Shinichi's home. Within the house's lobby, the six 'housemaids' split up. Kasuma and Kazuha taking the second floor, mainly the bedrooms, Ran and Sonoko cleaning the library, and Conan and Heiji… they weren't really assigned anything. So they stuck to cleaning the library due to its enormous size. Heiji sighed, "We shouldn't have to do this; we've got a riddle to solve."

"Fine, leave everyone else to cleaning my enormous house while _you_ lounge around trying to solve a riddle that _can't_ be solved until we get more clues. Taku Heiji," Conan whispered.

Conan ran foreword and grabbed a duster, running up to the second floor of the room.

* * *

2nd floor, Shinichi's bedroom

July 26, 9:16 AM

After finally dusting and tidying up the master bedroom, Kasuma and Kazuha moved onto Kudo Shinichi's room. Thanks to Ran's splurge on the layout, the girls were able to easily find the right room…. (Or it could have been all books of mystery writers that gave it away. The books that were scattered all over the bed and floor) Kazuha groaned, "He could have at least been a _little_ neater, there are books everywhere!"

Kazuha's companion smiled, "Well then, we can just organize them for him." She bent down and began collecting the strewn out books, piling them in her arms and setting the piles of mysteries on top of the bed.

Kazuha began dusting off the bookshelf and desk while Kasuma sorted the books she had found. Among the piles, there were also various albums mixed in. She opened on of them, flipping through the pages quietly. She stopped on one particular page, a page filled with pictures of Shinichi's parents and Shinichi as a little boy, about seven. On the page opposite the first were pictures of Ran and Shinichi at the same age. In almost all of them, the two childhood friends were displaying the peace sign, smiling cheerfully. Kasuma pulled one of them out and looked at it closely then flipped to a previous page where there were more pictures of Shinichi as a teenager. Pulling out one of those, Kasuma carefully placed them inside her purse.

* * *

1st floor, Library

July 26, 10:10 AM

Five figures met inside the Kudo library and gathered the cleaning utensils that had been used throughout the entire house. One person was missing, "Kasuma-neechan? Where are you?"

"I'm in the kitchen Conan-kun; I'm checking the refrigerator for any toxic substances." Came the reply.

Heiji snickered at looked and a scowling Shinichi, 'I took care of that right after I got shrunk. Why would I bring any more food to an abandoned house?'

There was a loud clatter as everyone in the large room heard Kasuma exclaim, "Shit!"

Ran ran over to the kitchen and flung open the door, peering inside. "What's wrong, Kasuma?"

"Ah, nothing, the drawer fell out, that's all." Kasuma picked up the fallen drawer and set it back in its place.

'Oops, I need to get that fixed soon. Before someone actually gets hurt.' Shinichi thought.

"You're not hurt are you?" Ran asked searching for an injured area.

Kasuma smiled, attempting to ease her friend, "I'm fine. I didn't get cut if that's why so look so worried. I would be worried about the floor's condition, might be a few nicks in it."

"I guess so," Ran surmised. "Well, we're done here, we can go soon."

Kasuma nodded and went into the library to pick up the cleaning materials they had brought with them. A few minuets later, the Kudo residence was once again silent.

* * *

Internet

Instant Messenger via World Wide Web

July 26, 10:14 AM

_kk-kk8: Subject change… how's the heist plan goin'?_

_d0r0b0r0s: I'm almost done… all we need is those 2 tantei 2 solve the last section; it's takin' them a while. U have no idea how hard it is 4 me not 2 send dem another clue._

_kk-kk8: what section? The latin?_

_d0r0b0r0s: hai, it's the third night watch they're stuck on. Though….technically it's not latin_

_kk-kk8: whatev, u still get the idea. N u still haven't told me the exact location! Where is it?_

There was a slight pause.

_d0r0b0r0s: hold on, there's someone else here…brb_

There was a pause lasting a couple minuets as d0r0b0r0s dealt with the 'someone' on their side. The person returned to the conversation.

_d0r0b0r0s: srry 'bout that. Someone was getting' a lil 2 curious._

_kk-kk8: where r u anyway? In a library?_

_d0r0b0r0s: iie. library no, public place yes. I was kinda dragged in2 comin' here._

_kk-kk8: ?_

_d0r0b0r0s: nevrmind, forget I brought it up. BTW.. I'm entering disguised as you._

_kk-kk8: then what will i….?_

_d0r0b0r0s: while I distract most of the guards you will sneak in and…

* * *

_

Chitose, Japan

Chitose Museum

July 28, 6:51 PM

"So, where's the amethyst?" Heiji asked looking around the large room they were still in.

"Not here," the head of the Keshiki family, Keshiki Sakuma, an elderly woman around 75 wearing a simple light green skirt and blouse. Her grey hair was pulled up into a tight bun at the nape of her neck though there were some stray wisps flying around. "The exhibit isn't due to open until the fourth of August so the amethyst is still inside our house. I wouldn't give the museum our heirloom this early thief or no thief. I suppose you would like to see the amethyst." She looked at her watch and mumbled incoherently.

Heiji bent down, "Did you hear what she said Kudo?"

Conan shook his head, 'Of course I heard it, but it was just about the time. Speaking of time, we still don't know when Masked Mage is going to strike.'

Keshiki Sakuma led the group outside the building and into the night, piling into the waiting limo first. The others followed. Conan pulled out the heist letter once again. "Ah le le? The note's different."

Heiji, who was just about to get into the vehicle, bolted back out and grabbed the note, "What are you—what the hell, it _did_ change!"

Mouri joined the two boys and stared at the note, "It's a KID note too." Heiji mumbled, "Who would've known."

"It's announcing the same place and object but not the time." Mouri mused. Mouri grabbed the letter and read it aloud, "'Surprise, surprise. Didn't expect me did you? I've come to steal the Purple Tear from its precious hold. Kaito KID.'"

Sakuma's head popped out, "There's someone else after my jewel? The nerve of those young people! Stealing an old woman's most precious object."

Mouri walked over to the lady, "Don't worry, I, Mouri Kogoro, will protect the Purple Tear at all costs!"

Heiji and Conan rolled their eyes. Heiji froze, "Why do you say 'young people'?"

"I say that because Kaito KID and Masked Magician are both in their late teens." Sakuma stated plainly.

"Demo Oba-san, how can you tell Masked Mage is a teenager? He always wears a mask." Conan asked, looking up at the lady.

"It's the agility. A-gi-li-ty. That thief is all over the place what with him or her flipping around like that. There's no way someone older would bother with fancy tricks like that. Maybe a few leaps and such but nothing fancy. I also believe that thief is or was a dancer." Sakuma explained, looking at Conan.

"A dancer," Heiji looked at Sakuma. "Why is that?"

Sakuma sighed, "I guess its just dancer's intuition. Though I can't tell what kind of dance that thief did or does." Sakuma got back into in car with Conan, Heiji, and Mouri climbing in after her. Once in the car, Sakuma sighed once more, "I wish I'd continued Ballet and Tap."

Ran finally spoke up, "You did Ballet and Tap? That's so cool!"

Kazuha nodded, "That would be fun, going to a ballet."

Ran nodded back and smiled. Heiji elbowed Conan and whispered, "Hey, _there's_ a possible date location." He snickered.

Conan glared at the teen, "Urusei. I can't really _do_ that if I'm stuck like this." He retorted, pointing out his current form.

"Heh, so are ya admitting the fact that ya want to take Ran out on a date." Heiji taunted.

Conan looked at Ran and sighed, "Well I guess I owe her that much. I've made her wait too many times, I guess she deserves it." The image of a weeping Ran swept to the front of his mind. Shinichi cringed away from the memory, 'I don't _ever _want to see her cry like that again.' (A/N: That may have been an actual line from the show and if it was… I didn't mean to copy it)

The car began to move. Ran sighed quietly. "Is something wrong Ran-chan?" Kazuha asked her friend.

"Not really," Ran shook her head. "I was just thinking about how Kasuma would respond. She loves studying rocks and gems. It seems to be her best subject in school. She would've loved to tag along."

"Didn't you ask?" Kazuha pressed.

"Well, yeah but, she said something about babysitting. At least that's what I think I heard." Ran shrugged, "We can bring her next time I guess."

Mouri looked at Ran with a raised eyebrow, "You want to wait for another heist by those two thieves to come up just so you can bring your friend?"

'That's supporting their thefts Ran.' Shinichi smirked.

"Well, she _does_ also seem to be interested in Kaito KID and Masked Magician. When I visited her house, there were dozens of files on the heists those two had pulled beginning from four years ago with the Mage and twenty years ago with KID." Ran said, thinking back. 'She had said something else about them but… I can't remember what she said.'

"By the way, Ran-neechan, did you see Kasuma's brother when you visited her house?" Conan asked.

Ran shook her head. "No, there wasn't anyone else there. Maybe he was at a friend's house."

"Oh. Wakarimashita (I see)." Conan mumbled.

"Disappointed?" Kazuha asked Conan.

"A little bit. I wanted to meet her Otouto-san." Conan frowned.

Ran smiled warmly, "I'll ask her next time I see her. Okay, Conan-kun?"

"Arigato!" Conan exclaimed.

"Anyway," Heiji diverted, looking at Sakuma, "What's the situation with the Purple Tear? Do you have a security system set up?"

"I always have a security system enabled but not for valuables like that. It's merely for valuables like my family. I don't believe in protecting material items, as long as the family itself is safe and secure." Sakuma stated.

"Then you don't want the Purple Tear protected?" Mouri asked.

"Not me but my daughter. She's taken a liking to it and wants to keep it safe. She's the one who suggested we call for backup. She insists that it stay in the family as our heirloom, not be known as a stolen object that is in the hands of the two greatest phantom thieves, even if they do return it." She sighed, "The jewel itself isn't protected, it's only held inside a jewelry box."

"So does that mean it's a necklace?" Conan asked.

"That's right boy. What made you think that?" Sakuma asked the boy.

"Well, you said it was kept in a jewelry box and since it must be too big to fit on a ring or bracelet I thought it must be a necklace. Was I right?" Conan asked.

The old woman smiled, "Yes, that's right. It is rather big, even for a necklace. It's been a tradition throughout the family that when a woman in our family gets married, she wears the Purple Tear to the reception, and the reception only mainly because I don't like to advertise it too much."

The limo slowed down to a crawl as a large mansion came into view. Outside the gate, it came to a full stop and the passengers all piled out. Keshiki Sakuma led the group down the pathway and up the stairs leading to the house. A butler opened the door and stepped aside, letting everyone in. The door was closed shortly after that and the same butler offered to take everyone's coats. Sakuma walked up to the stairs and ascended them, the others following closely behind. The lady made a right turn and opened the first door. "This is my room. It is also where the Purple Tear is." Sakuma stated. "Let's see… well, you've have a long journey, how about some dinner? I'm sure you all are hungry."

"That would be great, thank you." Ran said, "Would you like some help around the kitchen?"

"Thank you for offering but the staff will be alright. You may all rest until the food is ready. All the rooms to the right of this room are bedrooms. You may use one for the time being. Please make yourselves at home."

Everyone exited the room and Sakuma locked the room up using her key. "Oba-san, do you always keep the window in there locked?" Conan asked.

"Yes, it's always locked. I haven't opened it in probably years, it may not even open easily." Sakuma answered, smiling. "Aren't you a little security guard, but even guards need to rest. Why don't you sleep in this room here?" Sakuma opened the neighboring room's door and walked in with Conan. Inside, there was a large queen bed with dark red beddings and a matching cherry colored desk and closet. In the middle of the room was a big red rug sitting elegantly in its place. "Wow, this room is so big!" Conan exclaimed.

The lady behind him smiled. "Of course, this is the master bedroom."

Conan turned around, "You don't use the master bedroom? Why?"

"I never really liked elaborate pleasures like these. I prefer the more average setting. It's cozier." Sakuma remarked. "Well, please make yourself at home."

"Arigato!" Sakuma walked out and closed the door quietly. Conan walked up to the large bed and pulled back the covers. He looked at two doors opposite of the entrance and, instead, went to open it. There was a long, white balcony that stretched along the side of the house and led to many of the other bedrooms. Conan turned to the right and looked through the windows and into the room. "This is Sakuma-sama's room." He mumbled to himself.

Conan turned and headed back to the master bedroom. Up ahead, there was another person on the balcony. Though the person looked familiar, at the same time, she didn't. Conan shrugged and walked back into the room and closed the doors. He then turned and collapsed onto the bed.

* * *

Chitose, Japan

Keshiki Mansion—Master Bedroom

July 28, 11:50 PM

"Oi, Conan-kun. Conan-kun! Wake up." A female voice called out.

Conan felt his body shake slightly by someone at the edge of the bed, "Ran?"

A different voice appeared, "It's almost Showtime, and I refuse to let you sleep through my wonderful performance planned for tonight."

'Wait a minuet…' Conan thought, 'That's….'

Conan's eyes shot open and he found himself staring right into the mask of an infamous thief. Masked Mage straightened, "Much better. And now that you're awake, it's time for me to finish the opening preparations."

Conan sat up and looked at his left wrist. "Where's….. watch. Where did it go?"

"You mean this?" Masked Mage held up a silver watch in the dim light. "I borrowed it; can't have you shooting me with this thing. As for the time, the second watch is almost over." Masked Mage walked to the balcony doors and opened them rapidly, streaming moonlight bouncing off the mask, causing it to glitter. Conan ripped off the covers and clambered out of the bed, closing the distance between detective and thief in seven large strides. Before he could lay a hand on the long, white cape, Masked Mage pushed off the balcony rail and landed on the roof. Conan looked at the mask in front of him, "Is that glass?"

"That was a rather random question but yes… it is glass." Masked Mage set the Stun-Gun Wrist Watch on the edge of the roof and disappeared into the night.

Conan growled and glared at where the 'visitor' had placed his watch, 'He's trying not only to mock my size but _laugh_ at me because of it.' Conan walked along the balcony, peering into the doors, "Heiji's gonna never let me live this down."

Conan saw Heiji and Kazuha bickering, again, and sighed, walking towards the doors and knocking twice. Kazuha looked out the door and tapped Heiji's shoulder. Heiji turned, shrugged, and opened the door, "What is it Ku—"

"Hayaku Heiji-niisan." Conan interrupted.

Conan pulled Heiji outside and dragged him to the balcony outside the master bedroom. "What the hell Kudo?"

Conan looked up at Heiji, "Someone's being mean to me. Look what they did with my watch!"

Heiji looked at the watch's perch, looked down at Conan and burst out laughing. Kazuha joined them and looked up at the watch, "Heiji! That's rude!"

"Sorry, sorry. It's just funny!" Heiji chocked out, still laughing.

"It's not funny when a thief does it." Conan glared at the moon.

Immediately Heiji stopped laughing and looked down at the boy. "You're joking."

"Baka na, that's not a joking matter. They're already here." Conan mumbled.

Heiji smirked and jumped up to knock the watch down where Conan caught it easily. Conan flung open the door to the master bedroom and bolted inside, opening the door leading to the hallway. "Wait! Conan. Hold on!"

Conan whirled around and looked at Heiji, "Where is everyone?"

"Well, there are still some people sleeping but most of the officers are in the dining room. I'll lead you there." Heiji turned and led Conan down a series of halls until they saw several detectives and officers.

Heiji opened the nearly-closed doors and the two of them walked inside. Detective Sato looked up and smiled, standing up and walking up to Conan. "Are you hungry, Conan-kun? You slept right through dinner and no one was able to wake you. There's some food on the table there, Ran-chan's kept it warm."

Conan nodded and ran up to the table, kneeling on a chair and peering into the bowl on the table. He looked around the room, searching for any abnormalities. Ran walked into the room. 'Wait, that's not Ran…' Shinichi looked at the girl. 'I think I know who that is but….' Conan yelped, "AHH! She's not supposed to be here! What if she's KID or Masked Mage!" he pointed at the girl.

The girl stopped short and an eyebrow rose. Inspector Nakamori shot up and announced, "She's not KID! I think I would know my own daughter!"

'That's what I thought.' Conan smiled weakly, "Gomen, Nakamori-kebu. But I thought maybe they'd already be in here. I saw Masked Mage outside my bedroom." Shinichi silently added, 'As well as _inside_.'

"WHAT? Masked Mage, here?" the officers on the couch stood up rapidly.

Conan nodded, "Right, Heiji-niisan? You saw what he did to my watch. He was being mean!"

"Is that true, Hattori-kun?" Inspector Megure asked.

Heiji snickered, "Well yeah, but I thought the brat was joking."

"Who you callin' brat?" Conan mumbled incoherently.

"When it comes down to Conan-kun, you probably shouldn't take his comments as jokes." Inspector Shiratori muttered.

Heiji smiled and shrugged. The clock struck. Everyone turned to look at the immense grandfather clock in the corner of the room. Conan looked at Inspector Megure, "We have to get to Keshiki-sama's room now! The third watch starts in five minuets!"

"How do you know?" Detective Sato asked.

"Masked Mage told me." Conan stated.

Conan ran out the door and down the hall. Heiji kept an easy pace with the boy two strides behind him. "What's this about Double-M?" he asked panting quietly.

"When Double-M stole my watch and before he placed it on the roof, he gave me the time… well, not an exact number. He just said, 'As for the time, the second watch is almost over.' He reminded me of the Vigiliae, the night watches from the Ancient Roman times. The Prima Vigilia is begins at six 'o clock pm and ends at nine 'o clock pm. The Secunda Viligia starts at nine 'o clock pm and ends at midnight. The Tertia Vigilia starts at midnight and ends at three 'o clock am. And the Quarta Vigilia starts at three 'o clock am and ends at six 'o clock am."

"Oi, Conan-kun, Hattori-kun, come back! The two thieves are on the outskirts of the building!" Inspector Megure yelled. "An officer just spotted them outside."

Conan and Heiji turned but didn't move. Inspector Megure, not waiting for the two boys, ran towards the entrance where the other officers had apparently already left for. Heiji started to follow but then looked at Conan, "Are you coming, Kudo?"

"You go ahead, Heiji." Conan waved his hand lightly. Heiji started to leave, "Wait, is there access to the roof?"

Heiji nodded, "Yeah that door right there leads to the roof." Heiji explained, pointing to a door behind Conan.

Conan looked at it and nodded, taking note of its location, "Arigato."

Heiji waved and walked away, heading to the outside of the building where the other officers had gone. Conan wandered down the hall and glanced at the doors as he passed, opening a few of them as he went. He stopped outside Sakuma's room and pressed his ear against the door, straining to hear any sounds coming from inside the room. Conan glanced at his watch and, while he was at it, turned the dial on his sneakers on. 'One minuet to midnight. As Double-M said himself, 'Showtime'.' Shinichi thought, recalling his earlier encounter with the thief.

With the seconds ticking, counting down until the beginning of the third watch, Conan strained even harder to pick up every minute sound. Right on cue, at the stroke of midnight, all the grandfather clocks including the one within Sakuma's room began their normal schedule of sending out loud sound waves heard as chimes and ringing twelve consecutive times. As if rehearsed, there was a shudder from inside Sakuma's room as, most likely, the window that wasn't supposed to be able to open, opened. Conan threw the door open and ran in, stun gun raised and poised for an attack. Kaito KID looked at the diminutive detective and smiled, "Welcome to the party, Tantei-kun. I'm glad you could make it."

"Where's your magician friend?" Conan asked.

"Distracted," KID stated tersely.

"Somehow, I doubt that." Conan mumbled.

"With good reason," KID smirked. "You _are_ talking to an illustrious phantom thief."

Conan scoffed and looked back up at a still smirking thief. Slowly, Kaito KID moved his hand behind his back and when it was brought foreword again, his hand was clenching a gun; his _card_ gun. The gun was fired. Conan flinched at the small breeze blowing at him and once he had blinked, the lights to the room were off. There was a rustling sound as KID made his way around the room, the only source of light coming from the open window since the hallway lights had been switched off earlier. "Hmph, nice shot KID." Conan applauded.

"Thank you very much," came the response.

'There,' Shinichi thought, turning to aim his watch at the direction of the voice. "Before you shoot, I want to say one thing." KID replied smoothly. KID picked up something before speaking again, "Attention! The KID out there is a fake! The real KID has been spotted behind the mansion; he's knocked out all the guards. Send some more people over here immediately."

Conan froze at the sound of Inspector Nakamori's voice in front of him. "KID, you idiot." He mumbled.

Before Conan had time to react, KID jumped out the window and started climbing. "Kusou!" Conan turned around and ran towards the exit Heiji had shown him earlier. The shrunken detective thrust the door open and ran up the stairs to the roof. Opening the door, Conan found not one but _two _thieves on the roof, preparing to escape. 'Like I'd let you.' Shinichi thought running foreword. Masked Mage turned around and pointed a gun at a crouching Conan. KID's visible eye widened and he glanced at the thief beside him. Conan could hear him whisper, "You wouldn't."

Masked Magician flicked some stray hair behind his shoulder. "Yes I would, I have a good shot." Behind the mask, the thief smirked. Conan, of course, couldn't see the action.

"Is that a _real_ gun?" Conan, worry beginning to cloud his mind.

"Want proof, Conan….. Tantei-kun?" Masked Mage loaded the gun and pointed it back at Conan.

'No, I'd rather not,' Shinichi thought. Conan took in a deep breath and, at the top of his lungs, belted, "SOMEBODY HELP ME! HELP! I'M SCARED." Conan looked at the two thieves and smirked.

"Well played detective. But not well enough." Masked Mage said as he dropped the gun. The two thieves ran for the edge of the rooftop. Conan adjusted his sneakers to the correct setting, inflated a soccer ball and kicked it, aiming for one of the two thieves. Masked Mage turned to shoot a tiny projectile at the roof. Smoke emitted from the object and once the smoke cleared, there were two hang gliders in the air.

Conan walked toward the gun and, using a handkerchief to grab it, examined the weapon. 'Shit. It _was _real. If he _had_ shot, I would have been a goner.' Conan released the trigger and set it back down where he found it. "KUDO!"

Conan looked up at Heiji who had just bolted onto the roof. "What happened?"

Conan looked at the gun, "Nothing. Just the typical chase-thieves-and-fail-in-catching-them routine. Kusou! I wouldn't have hesitated if he hadn't shown me _that_ thing."

Heiji picked up the gun on the ground and studied it. "Isn't this one of the officers' guns? It's the same model as the others. What happened up here Kudo?"

"I was threatened with a gun. Nothing special."

"Baka… 'Nothing special' my ass! Like gettin' threatened with an officer's gun is 'nothing special'." Heiji rolled his eyes and removed the magazine from the gun. His eyes widened, "There are no bullets! It's empty!"

Conan jumped up and grabbed the object, looking at it with narrowed eyes. "Baka," he scolded himself. "I should have known. I doubted he would have used a real gun. He must have removed the bullets after stealing the gun."

"Like_ hell_ he did. The bullets are over here." Heiji announced.

Conan ran up to the high school student and bent over to look at the small bullets. "Double-M either threw them once he ran out that door," Conan began looking at the entrance.

"Or, Double-M was on that part of the roof and merely dropped them from up there." Heiji finished, glancing up at a higher level of the roof.

Conan punched the ground beneath him at glared at the wall. Shaking his hand slightly, Conan stood up and looked at the door by the wall. He walked to the door and peeled a piece of paper, colored like the door, off of the door. "'On the tertia dies of the month of Octavian, when the seconds bisect the twenty-second, I will perch upon the sunset and steal the ocean.'" The boy looked at Heiji, "Guess who it's from."

"Well maybe, just maybe, it's from a famous phantom thief!" Heiji muttered. "Damn, that thief has too much time on his hands."

Conan sighed, "Here we go again, showing another note to the Inspector."

Heiji nodded and led the way down to the entrance of the mansion.

* * *

Outside the Keshiki Mansion

July 29, 12:34 AM

"Taku, another one?" Inspector Megure mumbled. The officer read over the note and frowned. The note was passed around until it made its way back to Heiji and Conan. There was a slight vibration in Conan's pant pocket and he looked down at the phone charm sticking outside it. The faux first grader pushed the note into Heiji's hand and ran off to the side to answer the phone. "Sorry, but this is kinda a bad time."

"Well, that's too bad," the voice remarked.

"Haibara? Why are you calling now?" Conan hissed.

Haibara sighed, "No need to snap, Kudo-kun. But I want you to drop by Hakase's house when you're done over there."

"I'm all the way in Hokkaido!" Conan exclaimed.

"I know that _baka_, which is why I said 'when you're done over there'. There's no _way_ for you to try out the new prototype I created _unless_ you're back in Beika." Haibara commented in her usual cool, collected tone.

"New…Proto…type..?" the puzzle pieces came together. "Have you found an antidote for Apotoxin-4869?"

"No... Where you even _listening_? It's a prototype, a mere test. If it is successful, this prototype should last _much_ longer than previous changes."

Conan nodded, a grin slowly appearing. "Wakatta. I'll definitely be there." Conan closed the phone.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

August 1, 12:01 PM

"So what's your excuse?" Haibara Ai asked, breaking off a single banana and placing it on the kitchen counter.

"Excuse for what?" Conan returned, picking up the yellow fruit and fiddling with it absentmindedly.

"Idiot. Where is Conan going to be during your return? He can't just disappear."

Conan shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe off on vacation with my parents. It's the perfect time for that kind of excuse."

Just then, Dr. Agasa walked in. Pulling himself into the conversation, he added. "If you want to go with that reason, I can talk to Ran-kun about it."

Conan looked at the professor, "Guess so… but I'd better tell my parents so they won't be lost if Ran decides to check up on me."

Haibara looked at Conan, "_You're_ eating that." She walked out of the kitchen.

Conan quirked an eyebrow then felt the fruit in his hands. He opened his mouth to respond but Haibara was already walked down to the lab.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

August 1, 12:45 PM

"Is that right, Conan-kun?" Ran asked the boy.

Conan nodded, "Uh huh, Shinichi-niisan's parents said they wanted to take me sightseeing in Manila."

"Is that where they are right now?" Ran mused.

"Yup! Agasa-hakase said he could take me to the airport where they will be waiting."

"And how long is it going to last?" Ran asked, grabbing a suitcase.

"Around a week," was the reply as Conan bent down to place several articles of clothing in the bag.

Ran stopped in her tracks, hands on the top of the suitcase. "Is Shinichi with them?"

Conan also stopped. He looked at Ran's downcast face and sighed. "No…he's not…"

"Oh," Ran looked down at the suitcase.

"Shinichi-niisan has a later flight." Conan mumbled.

"What did you say, Conan-kun?" Ran's head snapped up.

'Deep breath!' "Shinichi-niisan has a later flight." Conan announced.

The door opened, "So that means I'll get to meet Ran-san's husband. That's a great turnaround."

"Mou, Kasuma!" Ran blushed.

Kasuma walked over to the bed and sat down, taking care not to knock over the piles of clothes that were sitting on the mattress. She flicked some stray hairs away and looked at Conan. "Where are you going?"

Ran resumed packing, "Shinichi's parents are taking Conan-kun sightseeing in Manila for a week."

"Huh, the Philippines? If you can, Conan-kun, you should drag Shinichi's parents to Bohol. The tarsiers there are adorable." She smiled and handed the boy a small pile of clothes.

"Arigato Kasuma-neechan." Conan mumbled.

"Say 'hello' to them for me. And ask them to scold their son for abandoning his wife."

This time both Conan and Ran blushed. Kasuma smiled and whispered, loud enough for only Conan to hear, "Ah le, why are _you_ blushing, Conan-kun?"

Conan faced the suitcase and mumbled incoherently. Kasuma smiled and handed Conan another pile of clothes. Kasuma glanced at her watch and frowned. "It's almost one. Are you two hungry?"

Ran looked up, "Ohmygod! I forgot to fix lunch. Conan-kun, what do you want?"

"Uh, whatever is fine." Conan said.

"Kasuma, would you like to stay?" Ran asked.

"Sure. I'll help Conan-kun while you're getting lunch ready… unless you want help." Kasuma looked up at her friend.

"No. It's okay, I'll be fine." Ran opened the door and walked out, closing the door behind her.

"I'll cut to the chase, who are you?" Conan asked, facing Kasuma.

"I'm a Japanese-American by the name of Kazuki Kasuma. I thought that was obvious. Who are you? Not a normal seven-year old, I'm sure." Kasuma answered smoothly.

"You already know that, Kasuma-neechan!" Conan said happily. "Edogawa Conan…" his eyes narrowed. "Detective."

"Hm, a seven year old detective?" Kasuma smiled, "You like playing detective, don't you? Gonna take that up as a profession? Did Mouri Kogoro-san inspire you?"

"He can't solve a case to save his life." Conan mumbled.

Kasuma placed the last pile of clothes into the suitcase. "I know that," the faux seven-year old looked at her. "But, you must be a lucky charm. Apparently when it was just Oji-san and Ran-san, Kudo Shinichi-kun was the famous detective. But when _you_ started staying with them, his fame skyrocketed and Shinichi-kun, in a sense, died."

"That's what I'm talking about, Kasuma-neechan!" Kasuma gave the boy a puzzled look, "How do you get all this information? It may not even be true but you have so much of it!"

"Research… Isn't that what detectives do? At least part of it is research, the other half is observation." Kasuma helped Conan close the suitcase, "That's what my friend from England said. He also said, 'A detective's _job_ is to find the truth'." Kasuma pulled the packed suitcase out the door and placed it by the couches. "I don't know what's up with you, Conan-kun, but something _is_ up. And I _will_ unravel the truth."

'Determined much?' Shinichi thought, running into the kitchen and looking inside. Kasuma followed him inside and Conan looked up at Ran, "Is lunch almost ready, Ran-neechan?"

"Yup, I'm almost done. I just have to prepare these vegetables." Ran turned around.

"Would you like some help, Ran-san?" Kasuma asked.

"Go ahead, can you start chopping up the vegetables?" Ran asked Kasuma.

The high schooler nodded and grabbed the knife Ran was holding up in order to begin the task at hand.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

August 1, 1:39 PM

"Have fun, Conan-kun!" Ran exclaimed, waving as Dr. Agasa was loading Conan's suitcase into his small yellow beetle.

"Hai!" Conan returned. Ran turned around and met back up with Kasuma who had been standing in front of the Kudo mansion. The two of them turned and started back for the Detective Agency. Once they were out of sight, Dr. Agasa immediately unloaded the baggage and rolled it into his house, beaconing for Conan to follow. Conan entered the house and found the Professor and Haibara sitting in the couches. Conan walked over to Haibara and looked at her. "So why is this one supposed to last longer than any previous changes?"

"You were listening to that?" was the response Conan got.

"Well of course!" Conan exclaimed.

"My theory about that focuses on the severity of the common cold." Conan quirked an eyebrow, "My theory is simply: The less severe the cold or cold _symptoms_, the longer the change will last. Of course, your growing tolerance could hinder that theory useless but I suppose it's worth a try. I noticed you had a slight cough before you left for Hokkaido, is that still prominent?"

"Uh, yeah, a little bit." Conan answered.

Haibara nodded, "Then 'a little bit' should be enough. Here," Haibara handed Conan a small capsule and a glass of water.

Conan took them eagerly and left to go to a separate room. "Remember Kudo-kun, one week max." Haibara reminded him.

"Got it!" Conan said, closing the door and immediately ingesting the prototype. Suddenly, Conan cringed and collapsed, falling to his knees and clutching his chest. 'It's happening. It's really happening!'

**Final Notes: Mua ha ha ha! Cliffhanger. I'm so extremely sorry about this weird updating schedule. With homework, sports, and life in general (as well as some VERY annoying writer's blocks) I wasn't able to finish this chapter as soon as I would have liked to. I will try to do better but I can't (unfortunately) promise anything.**

**I will end up adding Japanese phrases like Wakatta, Tadaima, Souka, Baka (some of which I have already used and some of which I **_**will**_** use in the future)**

**So what did you think? Like it? Love it? Hate it? Please let me know what you thought. Every writer loves commentary (like through R&R's) Jane! Until next time…. enjoy life! :)**


	4. Sapphire Blue (3)

**A/N: Yay! The third chapter is up! Has anyone found the pattern I placed in this story yet? I know it was mean, ending on a cliffhanger (I really don't like cliffies but it makes you want to read on, deshou?) Gomen if events in the second chappy didn't make sense. This chapter will mostly be filler because the actual heist is rather short. This chapter will also be a teensy bit longer than the previous chapters because of the filler.**

**Warnings: High possibility of wrong calculations in the category of yen conversions.**

**Acknowledgements: A girl in my TA who read this chapter (at least what I had at the time) and unintentionally helping my find several grammar/spelling mistakes. Arigato! And thank you to the talk-show that I was listening to at midnight that gave me inspiration for Kasuma's splurge to Ran. (She actually gets **_**serious**_**, PLOT TWIST!)**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): I wonder if the reason I'm not going to repeat the fact that I don't own Detective Conan is due to my laziness. Hmm, the questions I randomly think up.

* * *

**

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Sapphire Blue

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

August 1, 1:50 PM

Kudo Shinichi looked into the mirror, no stepstools needed, and slipped on the blue jacket. He looked at his hands again, relieved that they were the right size, for the time being. Shinichi opened the bathroom door and walked out, placing his hands in his pockets. Seeing everything at his real height was relieving, though it felt weird. Shinichi soon brushed that off as he walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bright, red apple. Another form in the kitchen froze up; the figure gripping a tray of liquid, tea was it? Bright blue eyes met his own, "Are _you_ Shinichi-kun?"

Kudo Shinichi blinked, 'Why is she-? Wait, what did she ask?' Shinichi looked past the speaker and out into the living room, "Uh, yeah. I am," He responded.

"That was fast," the speaker, Kazuki Kasuma, contemplated.

Kasuma walked out of the kitchen and handed a cup of the tea to three other figures in the room. Curious, Shinichi walked out slowly and looked at the occupants as he bit into the apple in his hand. Kasuma walked back to Ran and whispered, "Does Shinichi-kun have messy, brown hair?"

Ran looked at her friend with a puzzled expression then turned around, "Yeah, he does…. Shinichi!"

"Well, _excuse_ me for having messy hair." Shinichi grumbled, but gave a weak smile to Ran.

Ran shot up out of her seat on the couch and walked up to Shinichi with her hands on her hips, "I thought you had a later flight."

"Is that what you heard?" Shinichi asked, "I was on an earlier flight. I got to the airport a few minuets before my parents."

"But Conan-kun said you had a later flight. He didn't lie to me did he?" Ran mumbled.

Dr. Agasa cut in, "Well, when Shinichi-kun's parent called saying they wanted to take Conan to Manila, _they_ had mentioned Shinichi having a later flight." The professor laughed nervously.

"Did you see Conan-kun, Shinichi? You're parents were supposed to pick him up." Ran asked, looking down at the floor.

"Was _he_ the little kid with Dr. Agasa?" Shinichi mused. "Oh, and who's this?" he nodded towards Kasuma.

Kasuma stepped foreword and bowed, "Kazuki Kasuma, yoroshiku."

"Yoroshiku," Shinichi returned, bowing as well. "Kasuma-chan… Is it alright if I call you that?"

The girl shrugged, "Guess so." A small smile formed on Kasuma's face and she grabbed Ran and Shinichi by the arm and dragged them into the kitchen doorway. She first turned to Ran, "You. Shinichi-kun. Date. Tomorrow. No exceptions."

Ran blushed and scowled at Kasuma. Shinichi diverted his eyes and took another bite out of his apple. Kasuma then grabbed Shinichi and pulled him further into the kitchen, "Seriously. If you don't take that girl out on a date, I will set it up for you. And if that's the case, you will soon know, just as Ran-san knows by now, it _will_ get bad. I can come up with some horrible ideas and you don't want them tested on yourself." Kasuma smiled, "Got it?"

Shinichi nodded slowly. "I'm not kidding. I already have many ideas for your date. There are tons of nice, fancy restaurants, several good movies out… oh and Tropical Land. I heard that place is fun."

Shinichi frowned, "NO! Don't you _dare_ take Ran back to Tropical Land. Besides, it's too crowded there."

"Fine, fine. But if you don't come up with something, I will. And it will be good to relax before the heist." Kasuma stated.

"Heist?" Shinichi said, furrowing his brow.

"Yeah, Masked Magician and Kaito KID's heist on the third… Oh right, you haven't seen the note. Here," Kasuma handed Shinichi a copy of the heist note. "Heiji-kun made a copy of the note they found and Kazuha gave it to me since they're apparently leaving in two days."

Shinichi took the piece of paper and looked over the note, already knowing what it said. "'On the tertia dies'… This is what you were talking about right?"

Kasuma nodded, "I take it you've taken some Latin classes. So you know 'tertia dies' means third day. And the line that says 'on the month of Octavian' refers to—"

"The month dedicated to Octavian… otherwise known as Augustus. So…" Shinichi continued.

"August…. This month," Kasuma finished. She smiled, "Wow, you really know your stuff. And I thought _I_ was the only one at Teitan High who knew obscure things."

Shinichi smirked, "Same goes for me."

Kasuma returned the smirk and went back to where Ran was still standing, watching the two of them converse. Shinichi fell into step behind the girl and Kasuma smiled at Ran, "Wear something nice tomorrow. Otherwise I will end up dressing you myself. Oh and Shinichi-kun… If anything other than what was planned happens and you have the urge to check it out… don't. I will take whatever murder or kidnapping or anything else in the crime category for you. Tomorrow will go on _un_-interrupted."

Ran blushed and mumbled incoherently. Kasuma walked past Ran and, on her way out of the kitchen, whispered to her, "I'll give you lovebirds some time alone." Ran's already prominent blush deepened and Kasuma smiled, walking out of the kitchen.

Shinichi took another bite from his apple and looked at Ran. Ran looked up and caught Shinichi's gaze. "How long are you going to stay _this_ time, Shinichi?"

"Around a week… I hope." Shinichi answered.

"Really?" Ran's face lightened up.

"Of course, I haven't had much of a break in a while. It'll be good to kick back a little…" Shinichi looked at the kitchen door. "Is it just me or is Kasuma-chan a scary person?"

"It's definitely not just you. I mean, she's very nice and all but there are times like just now when she gets 'evil'." Ran surrounded the word evil with air quotes. "She doesn't do that on a regular basis. Kasuma tends to act like that at least once a week."

"And she's a new student at Teitan?" Shinichi continued.

Ran nodded, "She transferred from either England or America, one of the two, a few months ago. She's kinda like you Shinichi."

"Don't tell me you're replacing me with her?" Shinichi looked at the door behind Ran.

Ran started to deny but instead said, "Maybe I am. At least Kasuma's loyal."

"Oi, you're making it sound like Kasuma-chan's a dog." Shinichi stated. "And I'm sorry I haven't visited in a while. It's just case after case. I've haven't gotten a _real_ break in a while."

"Yeah right," Ran's eyes started to water. She tried to blink the growing tears away, "You're lying. You can't be_ so_ busy that you're not able to sneak in a short visit more often. You're never here anymore."

'Ran,' Shinichi looked at the girl and leaned against the counter behind him. He closed his eyes, "Yes I am."

Just then, Kasuma walked back in carrying in a tray with empty cups and a kettle. She washed out the remains of the tea in the cups and placed them inside the dish washer. She turned around and held out the kettle, "Would you like some tea Shinichi-kun?"

"Um, not now… maybe later," Was the reply.

Kasuma looked from Shinichi to Ran and back again to Shinichi before shrugging and placing the kettle down and exiting the kitchen. Shinichi looked down at the copy of the heist note and ruffled his hair in frustration. "Great. This person gave me one day to figure out this note." He walked out of the kitchen and seated himself on one of the chairs. Ran stood behind him a read the note silently. Kasuma looked at the paper in his hands. "Do you think the line 'perch upon the sunset' refers to the location?" she asked the detective.

Shinichi looked down at the mentioned line and shrugged, "I guess so. But I don't think this is a KID note so it's a little harder for me to figure out."

Kasuma nodded, "I've worked against this thief, Masked Magician. So I have a feeling that line suggests the location. Of course there's another expert on the subject but it's hard to get a hold of him. He's always busy."

Kasuma's phone buzzed and she opened the device and scanned the screen. "Now how did that happen?"

"What happened Kasuma?" Ran asked, taking a seat on the nearby couch.

"Somehow Masked Mage got my number and sent a hint about the heist." Kasuma answered frowning.

"Creepy," Ran shuddered.

Shinichi rolled his eyes, "He probably got it from the school directory. Phone numbers are listed there… But what does it say?"

"Let's see… It says, 'My, my, gomen about the short time frame. Hountou ni. To make up for it, I'll give you a hint. It's pretty much the same as the last hint. Think about Japanese, Ancient Rome, as well as the clock face.'" Kasuma closed the phone. "And Shinichi-kun, please enlighten me… How could the thief know about the school I go to? It's not like I've advertised to the whole city sayin', 'Hey everyone, I go to Teitan High!' there's no way he should know about that fact."

"Well, if this guy's as good as KID with disguises, he could easily get into the school." Shinichi explained, "Though why he would, I don't know."

The phone buzzed again. Kasuma read the message, "He says, 'To find a rival… that's an easy question.'"

Ran shuddered, "That's really creepy." She gasped, "Was he was looking for _you_ Shinichi?"

Shinichi raised an eyebrow, "Doubt it. There wasn't a guarantee that I'd be at school when that guy 'dropped in'. But on another note, that means there must be a listening device in this room. That text wouldn't have worked in any other conversation except this one. The Mage can hear us somehow."

Kasuma smirked, "Of course _he_ finds a way to sneak in and place a listening device in here." She shrugged, "And if I know him, he'll probably get back in later and remove the device. Then go on to remove any evidence of him visiting." The girl sighed, "Anyway, what could he mean by Japanese, Ancient Rome, and the clock face?... Well, we just figured out the Rome hint but what about the other two?"

Shinichi took another bite from the apple and shrugged. "'Perch upon the sunset'…" Kasuma mumbled quietly."Sunset, sunset… Solis occasus… Higure…" Shinichi and Kasuma's heads snapped up. "The Higure Estate," they exclaimed simultaneously.

Shinichi pulled out a map while Kasuma fished out a phone directory and both of them began flipping through the pages. Ran looked back and forth from Kasuma to Shinichi and back to Kasuma as they scanned the different texts. Kasuma sighed, "There's no number shown here."

Shinichi nodded, "They're pretty private I've heard. At least we have a location." He showed the current page to Kasuma and Ran. He had circled a spot on the map before showing it to the two of them. Kasuma looked closely at the circle. "Chotto matte, that's near my house. It's only a few blocks east from me."

Shinichi stared at Kasuma, "Where.. do you… live?"

"I live a few blocks away from this house here." Was the reply.

"Uso!" Ran exclaimed, "This close? To Shinichi's house I mean."

Kasuma looked up at Ran, "What are you talking about?"

Ran continued switching gazes from Shinichi to Kasuma and Shinichi raised an eyebrow, "So that's why the landscape seemed familiar…"

Kasuma rolled her eyes, "Please don't tell me, out of all the cases you've encountered, you weren't able to notice the area by your house!"

"So I got too caught up in the case to take close notice to the location, so what?" Shinichi retorted. Kasuma smiled and shook her head. Shinichi looked around the room, "By the way, where's Agasa-hakase and Haibara? They were just here a few minuets ago."

"Those two went to a store to buy more groceries." Ran answered. Kasuma flinched at the sentence but continued to stare off into space.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Mega Mall

August 1, 2:47 PM

"Come on, Ran! Protesting won't do you any good." Kasuma exclaimed, tugging at Ran's elbow.

"Kasuma!" Ran said, ignoring her friend's comment on protest. "I do not need more clothes!"

Kasuma sighed deeply, "Sadly girl, you do. Especially for tomorrow," she smirked, "Which is also why _you_ are coming." Kasuma tugged at the elbow in her other hand.

Shinichi growled in defiance while trying unsuccessfully to suppress his rising blush. "Why can't girls leave guys alone, especially on the topic of clothes?"

"Shikashi, you're the one spending time with Ran. It's unfortunate if you have to look at something that seems off." Kasuma retorted.

"Are my clothes _that_ bad? I like them," Ran countered.

'I happen to like a lot of those clothes,' Shinichi thought, sighing. 'Shikata nai, Kasuma just _won't_ be teetered.'

Kasuma continued to drag Ran and Shinichi through the mall until she finally walked into a store. Shinichi didn't catch the name and neither did Ran. Kasuma finally let go when she reached a rack of dresses. She started to look through but then stopped, "Oi, the groom can't stay here right now. Shinichi-kun… leave."

"Oi! What was the point of even dragging me here?" Shinichi frowned, 'I still don't get this girl.' Shinichi swiveled on his heel and sat himself down in a chair near the entrance. 'Hey, she looks just like Ran…' he thought, noticing a girl of similar stature and appearance to Ran walk into the store. 'She was also at the Keshiki mansion, Nakamori's daughter if I remember correctly.'

There was a small yelp from behind Shinichi and the high school detective bolted out of his chair and ran back towards the sound, "Ran!"

Kasuma looked up at Shinichi and then snickered, "That's so _cute_! Did you see that Ran-san? Cute, cute, cute! Responding immediately to the most important girl in his life!"

Shinichi's eyes narrowed, "Urusei."

Kasuma smiled then dropped her expression and flicked her free hand (her other hand was busy hiding some white fabric behind her back) "Shoo, Shinichi-kun."

Shinichi grumbled under his breath and turned around to walk back to the seat he had earlier.

* * *

Beika Mega Mall

August 1, 2:50 PM

Kasuma smiled as Ran watched Shinichi's retreating form and pulled the fabric from behind her back, "Well, do you like it?"

"Mou Kasuma, it looks like a wedding dress, with all that white." Ran whined.

"But," Kasuma pouted, "It would look so _cute_! Especially on you," She looked at Ran's thoughtful face, "I'll hold onto it, just in case you change your mind."

Ran nodded slowly as her gaze fell upon the rack of dresses, "Ne Kasuma… why are you doing this?"

Kasuma shrugged, "Someone has to play match-maker here. And you said yourself that Shinichi tends to come and go really fast. The faster I act, the better the outcome will be… hopefully. And while I'm at it, I can prevent another 'separation.' It's clear _you_ won't act so someone has to." She began shifting through the dresses in front of her, "Hmm," she mumbled, almost to herself. "No… no pastels… let's see, how about this one Ran-san."

Ran looked at the light green dress. It was a very simple dress that sat a little above the knee and had white fabric that hugged the sides of the shoulders. "Um, well, it's very pretty but…" Ran started.

"Ran-san, if you're concerned about the skin exposure, all you'd have to do is wear a shawl over it. Simple," Kasuma said, shaking the dress slightly.

"Well, I could _try_ it, I guess." Ran gave in.

Kasuma smiled and searched the rack for the right size as she handed Ran the white dress she had held on to, "Try this on while I'm finding the right size for you."

Ran grabbed the dress and turned to go into the dressing room, "Ran-san? Make sure you come out and show me what it looks like."

Ran turned and nodded, before she walked into a room. Kasuma draped the dress in her hand over her arm and walked over to where Shinichi was sitting. She grabbed the hood of his blue jacket and tugged, "Come on, it's time to make yourself useful… and don't make a sound."

"What are you?..." Shinichi stammered.

"Didn't I just say not to make a sound? I mean it… Hayaku Shinichi-kun." Kasuma admonished, pulling Shinichi over to the dressing room area. She let go of the hood, "Wait here." She walked into the hallway lined with dressing rooms, "Ran-san?"

"Hai… I'm over here, Kasuma." Ran said, waving her hand over the door of one of the rooms. Kasuma approached the room, "Are you almost done, Ran-san?"

"Well… yeah but… do you _really_ want to see this? It doesn't look right."

Kasuma sighed, "Which is why I want you to show me how it looks, sometimes one opinion isn't enough. Come on; open up… before I knock the door off its hinges."

"Alright, I'm going." Ran unlocked the door and walked out timidly. Kasuma grabbed her hand and led her out of the hall, "There's a mirror out here, come on."

Kasuma led Ran out of the hall of dressing rooms and—much to Ran's dismay—to the very spot where Shinichi was waiting. As soon as Ran caught a glimpse of Shinichi looking at his watch, she immediately tried to hide behind Kasuma but Kasuma twisted away and leaned against a nearby wall. Shinichi chose then to finally look up from his watch and his breath hitched at the sight of Ran and the dress she had on. Ran had on a white dress that hung loose at her ankles and was lined with a gold trim along the bottom of the dress as well as the sleeves and waistline. The long dress adorned a slow sloping v-neck which was marking the cutoff of the silver glitter that was spread out throughout the top half of the white dress. Shinichi stood there wide-eyed as he silently gazed over the dress and the girl wearing it. Kasuma smiled, "She looks like an angel don't you think Shinichi-kun?"

Shinichi's eyes flickered over to Kasuma as she pushed away from the wall and walked up to Ran. "All we need are the fancy wings."

Ran blushed profusely and looked up nervously at Shinichi. Her gaze then switched to Kasuma, "Mou Kasuma. Not only does it look like a wedding dress, it _feels_ like a wedding dress."

"But you look so _cute_ in it. It suits you so _perfectly_! Don't you think Shinichi-kun?" Kasuma asked looking at Shinichi.

'She really _does_ look an angel. God, why do you do this to me Kasuma? Are you_ trying_ to torture me?' A blush began to rise on Shinichi's face, "I-It looks really good on you… Ran," he said, causing his blush to deepen in shade.

"So there really _is_ something wrong with this dress. I'm changing," Ran turned and walked back into the dressing room.

Kasuma followed her and stuck her foot in the door's path as Ran tried to use it to separate herself from Kasuma. "So… just because you got a compliment from Shinichi-kun, you believe that there's something wrong with the dress? That's silly," she remarked. "At least try this green one on." Ran looked at the dress warily. Kasuma sighed, "I won't pull you over to Shinichi-kun for an opinion, I promise."

Ran still looked skeptical, "Are you sure? And you won't twist the rules and drag _Shinichi_ over here?"

Kasuma drew an 'X' over her heart, "Cross my heart and hope to die. I will not."

"Okay," Ran gave in. "But once I try it on, I'm taking it off."

"Mou Ran-san, at least let _me_ see how it looks on you."

Ran didn't reply and closed the door in order to switch from the white dress to the green dress. She came out a few minuets later wearing the light green dress. Unlike the white garment, the green dress stopped short of her knees and the bottom half of the dress had embroidered white flowers. Kasuma stepped foreword to adjust the white fabric draped across Ran's shoulder then stepped back to glimpse at the entire number. "Hmm, this one suits you too. Not as much as the white dress but if it suits, it suits. You should get this one for tomorrow. You probably won't get a wide-eyed expression from Shinichi-kun, but I'm sure he'll like it."

Ran started to protest but changed her mind and retreated into the dressing room to change out of the dress. Another few minuets later and Ran stepped back out wearing the white skirt and purple blouse she had on before. Ran closed her eyes and held out the two dresses for Kasuma to retrieve. Kasuma complied and draped the dresses over her arm as Ran walked out of the dressing room. Ran walked past Shinichi and over to the rack of dresses they had been looking through. Shinichi raised an eyebrow and Kasuma giggled, hurrying over to the girl. "Stubborn child," Kasuma murmured as she passed Shinichi. She stopped short, "Don't just _stand_ there Shinichi-kun, get your butt over here."

Shinichi complied and met up with Ran and Kasuma just as Ran was pleading Kasuma to return the two dresses. Kasuma shook her head, pulling the green dress off her arm, "Buy this, onegai?" Ran shook her head, "Por favor? Si vis? Jebal? Paki? Palihog? Parakalo'? S'il vous plait? Per favore? Pazhaluysta? Be'vakasha? Le do thoil? How many different languages are you gonna make me use before you give in?"

"How many languages _do_ you know?" Ran asked.

"No idea," Kasuma answered briefly, "Now will you please buy this dress? Or will I have to rake my brain for even more languages? I just listed off twelve, how many more do you want? Oh, how about Swahili? Tafadhali? I'm gonna get weird stares from people here, you realize that right? Or do you _want_ me to be mocked by people here in the mall? Mean, mean, mean."

"Fine!" Ran announced, "Fine, I'll buy it. Happy?"

Kasuma beamed, "Very." Ran snatched the dress out of Kasuma's hand and turned towards a cashier. Kasuma walked quietly over to the rack of dresses and pulled something off the rack. "Interesting tactic, Kasuma-chan," Shinichi remarked.

"Arigato, and to think it actually worked!" she smiled, mostly to herself. She walked up to Ran and when she was done with her purchase, Kasuma shoved Ran and Shinichi out of the store, ordering them to stay put until she was done inside. Kasuma walked up to the cashier and placed her _opus_ on the counter. "Can you please make these separate?"

The cashier nodded and rang in Kasuma's purchases separately. "Oh," Kasuma continued. "Can you also gift-wrap this one?" she asked, indicating what she meant with her hand. The cashier nodded again and pulled out a box for gift-wrapping.

* * *

Beika Mega Mall

August 1, 3:10 PM

Kasuma walked out and stopped in front of Ran and Shinichi who had found two couches outside the store. Ran looked up and smiled faintly, "So what were you doing in there? What's in the bag?" she asked, switching her gaze from Kasuma's face to the bag behind her back.

"Secret. All will be revealed in due time." Kasuma smirked, the second smirk since arriving at the mall and grabbed the hood of Shinichi's jacket, tugging lightly. "Come on, off your butt." She regarded Ran, "I'm still not done with you."

"You just said 'dress' there was nothing in this deal about accessories!" Ran exclaimed.

"Well, I'm changing the deal… accessories would be perfect. Thank you for reminding me, Ran-san!" Kasuma chimed.

A groan slipped out of Ran's mouth but she didn't protest when Kasuma wrapped her arm around Ran's and dragged her into another store with Shinichi following closely behind. Inside the store, Kasuma urged Ran over to a stand covered with shawls and scarves. Ran, not focusing of the task at hand began staring at the exit. Suddenly, Ran squeaked, "Agasa-hakase!" she waved at the Professor who was just passing the entrance. He stopped short and waved back, entering the store, "Oh, Ran-kun."

Three kids ran up to Ran, "Ran-oneesan! Why are you here?" Yoshida Ayumi asked.

"Ayumi-chan, Genta-kun, Mitsuhiko-kun. You guys are here too? Oh and Kasuma behind me dragged me here." Ran answered, glaring at a smiling Kasuma.

"…Who?" Ayumi asked. She peered past Ran at Kasuma, who was watching the kids intently. She perked up and bowed, "Kazuki Kasuma, yoroshiku. And who might you three be?"

"Yoshida Ayumi!" the girl exclaimed.

"Kojima Genta!" the chubby boy said next.

"Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko!" the second boy finished.

"How do you know them Ran-san?" Kasuma asked her friend.

"They're friends and classmates of Conan-kun."

Kasuma nodded and turned back to the object of her attention before the kids and Dr. Agasa arrived. "So," Ran started. "Why did you come here Agasa-hakase?"

"Oh," he looked down at the kids, "Well, Ai-kun and I ran into them as we exited the grocery store across the street and I decided to treat them to a late lunch. It seems as if they had been running around and hadn't gotten much to eat."

"Oh, I see…" Ran replied. She froze when Kasuma draped a shawl over her shoulder. "What are you doing Kasuma?"

"Testing different fabrics on you… what does it look like? Hm, I think this green works best with that dress." She returned the other shawls to the rack. "You've been awfully quiet over there Shinichi-kun." She remarked. "Can't stop thinking about that white dress?"

"That's not what I'm thinking about!" Shinichi denied. "I'm trying to solve the Mage's riddle."

"_Sure_ you are," Kasuma smiled. She walked over to the cashier and paid for the shawl. "Well then," Dr. Agasa began, "I guess I'll see you all later."

"No, no," Kasuma said, "We're done here. We can come with you and help relieve the bill those kids will put on you."

The now much larger group walked out of the store and headed for the food court. Halfway to the food court, Ayumi looked up at Ran, "Ran-oneesan, where's Conan-kun?"

Haibara's eyes flickered up to Shinichi but she stayed silent as Ran answered, "Shinichi's parents took Conan-kun to Manila for vacation. He'll be gone for about a week."

"Lucky butt," Genta muttered.

"Alright kids, take your pick. Which restaurant shall we go to?" Kasuma asked, leaning down to the kids' height.

The three kids looked around the extensive food court, "Sugoi! There are so many restaurants here!" Genta exclaimed.

"Of course, it _is_ the Beika Mega Mall." Kasuma smiled, "Is there any place special that you guys want to go to?"

Genta raised his hand, "Somewhere with unagi!"

"Geez Genta, again with the unagi?" Ayumi whined.

"So what? I like unagi!" Genta retorted.

"Oh," Kasuma began, "I have an idea. I'll give you some money and you guys can find whatever you want. The rules are that you _must_ buy something from _this_ food court and you can't go over your limit. Is that okay?"

"Hai!" the three kids exclaimed.

"All right, let's see," Kasuma pulled out her wallet and shuffled through the contents. She pulled out a small handful of money and split it into even amounts. "Now remember, you can't go over the limit and if I or Ran-san, or Shinichi-kun, or Agasa-hakase catch you trying to find more money…" she tapped her chin, "Well, there will be some punishment, I'll have to find a really good one. Got it?"

"Hai!" they yelled.

"Alrighty then, disperse!" Kasuma announced. The kids ran into the food court and scattered throughout the crowd. "Kasuma, are you okay with this?" Ran asked.

"Okay with what?" she asked.

"You didn't have to use your own money, we could have split it."

"Well, let me think. You just bought that fairly expensive dress, Shinichi-kun probably… no _didn't _have time to get his own wallet, and Agasa-hakase probably provided them enough in the past… So I decided to give everyone a break. And really Ran-san, it's not like I gave them a humongous amount of money. I gave them enough to find a decent meal, not enough to buy a car." Kasuma remarked. "Oh, Haibara-san, have _you_ had something to eat?"

Haibara looked up at Kasuma, "Yes, I have."

Kasuma looked closely at Haibara then pulled something out of her wallet. She bent down, "Here," she said, holding out a small wad of money, "Get in there and buy something. I refuse to have someone starve here."

"I've already eaten," Haibara retorted, turning her head away from Kasuma. Kasuma sighed then grabbed the small hand of Haibara. Haibara flinched and clenched her hand into a fist. "Please don't be stubborn, it's clear you haven't had a sufficient meal and I want you to fill your stomach. You won't be able to function without some nutrients in your system." Haibara pulled her hand away. Kasuma tried a different approach. She slipped the wad of money into the pocket of Haibara's jacket. "If you decide you want to grab something to eat, then the money's right there. It's clear I can't force you to eat anything so I'll let you chose." Kasuma straightened. She looked at Ran, "Let's find some seats so everyone doesn't have to stand."

Ran nodded and followed Kasuma inside the food court. Shinichi started to follow but stopped, "Haibara, what's wrong?" he asked, taking note of her version of a shocked face.

She shook her head, "Nothing… it's just that…" she trailed off.

"It's just that what?" Shinichi pressed.

"Didn't I just say it was nothing?" Haibara shot back. She stuffed her hands into her pockets, one hand gently handling the small amount of money she had been given, not that she'd admit to her action. 'It's just that… she reminds me of Akemi.' Haibara smirked internally, 'Why did that little action shake me up so much?' She closed her eyes and took a seat in a chair belonging to the table Kasuma and Ran had found. Genta, Ayumi, and Mitsuhiko arrived a few minuets later and plopped their trays of food onto the table grinning madly. Genta exclaimed, "I can't believe how much food I got! I thought I wouldn't be able to get _anything_ with what you gave me," he grinned at Kasuma, "Arigato!"

"Yeah, arigato!" Ayumi and Mitsuhiko followed.

Kasuma smiled, "I'm not prohibiting you three from saying my name… you_ do_ realize that right?"

"Hai!..." they announced. Ayumi was the first to try out the combination that had formed within the other two's minds, "Kasuma…onee…san"

"Good, now that that problem is out of the way, let's get some food," she regarded Ran, Shinichi, and Dr. Agasa. She stole a quick glance at Haibara and murmured, "Chotto, someone will have to watch over the kids."

"Oh, I can do that," Dr. Agasa announced.

"Are you sure?" Kasuma asked. The professor nodded, "Alright, then I'll bring you some food as well." She stood up, "Come on, Ran-san, Shinichi-kun."

Haibara silently stood up and walked around the table. Kasuma quickly caught the action, "Are you coming with us, Haibara-san?"

The girl made a quiet sound of annoyance, "I'm going to monitor what you're buying for Agasa-hakase. He's on a diet."

Kasuma shrugged, "That's fine." She turned to follow Ran and Shinichi who had already started heading off towards a sushi shop. Kasuma left them for her own task at hand. She walked over to another restaurant and scanned the menu. "Haibara-san, would you be alright with vegetarian yakisoba and sushi for Agasa-hakase?"

"That would be suitable," Haibara answered. Kasuma approached the restaurant, "Can I have three orders of yakisoba and one sushi plate, please?"

"Coming right up," the man behind the counter answered.

Haibara looked at Kasuma, "Why three? You don't look like someone who would eat two helpings of yakisoba."

"Of course I wouldn't eat two helpings of yakisoba; the second one is for you." Kasuma replied.

Haibara stopped short and glanced up again at the high schooler. She opened her mouth to speak; thought for a second then closed her mouth, watching as Kasuma arranged the four plates onto two trays. She bent down and handed Haibara the tray with the sushi plate, "Can you give this to Agasa-hakase please?"

Haibara nodded and grabbed the tray as Kasuma picked up the second tray, balancing it on her right hand while slipping her wallet into her purse. Haibara approached the table first and plopped the tray in front of Dr. Agasa. She then found a nearby seat and settled herself in it. 'She _really_ reminds me of Akemi.'

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

August 2, 6:10 AM

"Ran-san, wake up. Wake up!" Kasuma shook the girl, "Mou, will I have to dump water on you? I mean, if I have to I will but that'll just ruin your hair." Ran's eyes jerked open. "There we go, the water threat always seems to work… don't you think Shinichi-kun?"

Ran jerked up into a sitting position, "What are you?..."

Kasuma smiled and looked outside Ran's bedroom door, "Well, with Shinichi-kun I really _did_ dump water on his face. It worked rather well… isn't that right Shinichi-kun?"

There was a big yawn and Ran slowly walked out of her room to find Shinichi, his hair still slightly damp, sitting on the ground by the door, a hand covering his mouth to block the yawn as best as he could. He glared at Kasuma, "If I had been on the far side of the bed, your little tactic wouldn't have worked."

Kasuma crossed her arms and looked at Shinichi, "Well you wouldn't wake up when I shook you or when I tried different threats so I followed through with one of them. It's not my fault you fell out of the bed."

"Typically when someone waltzes into your house at five in the morning and dumps a cupful of water on your face, hell, the reaction _would_ be shock!"

"Oi, oi," Kasuma shook her head, "I may dance but I don't _waltz_. Speaking of dancing… Ran-san your dress is in the bathroom. You should go change into it."

Ran nodded slowly and found her way to the bathroom. Shinichi looked at Kasuma. "And what did that have to do with dancing?"

"Nothing whatsoever. That bag over there reminded me."

Shinichi looked behind him at the big blue bag leaning against the wall. "Oh, that bag you brought with you. What's in it anyway?"

"Your present for Ran-san."

"WHAT! Since when did I get a present for Ran?" Shinichi demanded.

"You didn't, I did." Shinichi narrowed his eyes, "I wish I could see her face when she opens it." Kasuma squealed, "There's probably gonna be lots of blushing as well as some shock, then embarrassment and, if things go well, happiness."

"Masaka… Did you put something strange or something totally out of my character in there?" Shinichi accused.

"I would _never_ do such a thing to my friend! Besides, I've only known you for… not even a full day, how could I know weather it was out of your character or not?" She walked over to the bag and pulled out the box inside. Shinichi shot up as soon as he saw the box, "Oi, that's my handwriting! What did you do? Photocopy something?"

"Chigau, I looked at your signature from something you did a few years ago." Kasuma explained.

"But how did you…?" Shinichi grabbed a piece of paper and drew kanji on the sheet. He held it up, "How were you able to create my _exact_ signature!" the paper he held up had two names on it, Ran and Shinichi. He shook the paper, "How were you able to forge my signature with no defects at all?"

"Oi, don't look at me as if I'm a criminal…" Kasuma began.

"Well, there's no other reason for someone to learn how to forge, is there?" Shinichi glared at Kasuma.

"Mou, I'm sure you've guessed this but I'm still a minor! I need parent signatures for pretty much anything, don't I? If my parents aren't around, how in the hell can I get stuff like that signed? That's my reason for knowing how to forge." Kasuma swiveled and glared at the wall, "I've had to do this for five years." She looked at Shinichi, "So that's why I was able to forge your signature so well!"

"Um, Shinichi, Kasuma? Are you two alright?" Ran asked quietly from behind the bathroom door.

Shinichi crumpled the paper in his hand and Kasuma smiled, walking up to Ran. "Yeah, we're fine… Now why are you hiding behind that door?"

"Datte!" Ran lowered her voice, "It's embarrassing!"

"Taku," Kasuma groaned, "That's why I got you a shawl!" She looked at Ran again, "Get in here." Kasuma pulled Ran into the bathroom and began searching through the drawers. She stopped when she found a comb and some hair ties. "Just hold still Ran-san," she said, pulling the comb through Ran's hair several times. "Kasuma… What are you…?" Ran whispered.

Kasuma glared at Ran through the mirror, "Didn't I just tell you to hold still? It'll hurt much more than it should if you're moving around." Ran settled down as Kasuma proceeded to fix Ran's hair. "Do you always wear you hair do… Did you hear that Ran-san?"

"Hear what," she asked, taking care not to move her head around.

"That talk-show on the radio," Ran shook her head. Kasuma smiled, "How true they are." She murmured.

"What did that talk-show talk about?" Ran asked.

"Let's see, since the door's closed, it was a little harder to hear… I think it was 'If you really love someone and you want to spend the rest of your life with them, treasure each and every moment with them because you don't know how long you'll be with them,' or something along those lines." Kasuma smiled, "It's just like the situation with you and Shinichi-kun."

"No it's not! I don't love that mystery-lover!" Ran denied.

"Oh? Then wouldn't that mean _he_ loves _you_? You're a mystery… well; pretty much anything could be considered a mystery. But be serious with yourself Ran-san, there must be some reason for your worry when he's not around or your desire to never leave his side when he _is_ here. Here… look at this," Kasuma showed Ran a picture from her cell phone. "Why?"

"Silly, it's what you're wearing right now." Kasuma smiled. "It's a teensy bit blurry but you can still see the form. Is it okay?"

Ran nodded and turned around, leaning against the bathroom sink, "I don't know what kind of emotion it is, but I feel uneasy when he's not around. And when he _does_ come, he leaves abruptly… just like that first time… when this stupid pattern began." Ran stared at the ground, frowning, "And when he seems to have something important to say, either something happens that distracts him or he makes up an excuse of having to leave."

Kasuma smirked and leaned against the bathroom door, "If you wait too long, your only chance may squeeze through your fingers, no matter how close together they are. Sou, just like water, no matter how you cup your hand when handling water, the liquid finds its way through the tiny cracks in your hand. And before you know it, there's nothing but air in your hand." Kasuma looked at Ran, "What, you think I'm joking? I wouldn't joke about this, I'm dead serious. Ran-san, take it from a girl with experience, don't just wait around for someone to act or something to happen. If you do that, you'll just end up hurt. And if you don't hold those precious memories tight in your hand, just like water, it'll slip away." Kasuma picked up the green shawl on the rack on her right, walked foreword, and draped it around Ran's shoulder. She smiled, "Come on, you've got a date."

* * *

Beika, Japan

Tropical Land

August 2, 6:45 AM

"You're not going to wear that?" Shinichi asked watching as Ran stuffed the green shawl in her white bag.

"Nope, it's just getting in the way." Ran remarked, snapping the bag shut and folding her arms across her chest. "And why are you wearing black and white."

"…Kasuma," they both said simultaneously. Ran giggled and Shinichi smiled. Shinichi looked back at Ran, "Doesn't the wind bother you?"

Ran shook her head, "Iie, not at all."

"Usotsuki," Shinichi accused, shrugging off his jacket in the process. He draped it over Ran's shoulders.

"Shinichi! I'm fine! Take back your jacket!" Ran exclaimed.

"You'll have to catch me first!" Shinichi turned and ran, not a fast pace but not a slow pace.

"Mou, Shinichi!" Ran called after him. Shinichi looked back and grinned. Ran began to pursue him and when she finally caught up to him, they had found themselves on the Island of Science and Space. Shinichi looked at his watch, "Man, we're ten minuets too early."

Ran shrugged, "I've already seen this fountain, Shinichi. Twice actually."

"I know that," Shinichi retorted, "But one more time wouldn't have hurt." Shinichi paused, "But I _know_ I told Kasuma-chan I didn't want to come back here. Just what was she planning?"

"Does it matter?" Ran asked, sitting down on a nearby bench, "I'm sure Kasuma just wants us to enjoy ourselves here, like last time… it _is_ an amusement park."

Shinichi groaned, joining Ran on the bench, "Don't say 'like last time'. Last time there was a murder, remember?"

"Of course I remember," Ran retorted, "I was referring to pretty much everything _other_ than the Roller-Coaster Murder."

'And last time, I saw something I wasn't supposed to.' Shinichi thought grimly. "If only I could go back and redo that day, things may have ended differently. Because, clearly I won't be able to forget it."

"You shouldn't forget it," Ran murmured. Shinichi rose a single eyebrow, "I don't want to forget our time here. If it weren't for that day, I wouldn't have met Conan-kun and he wouldn't have a home right about now. And I wouldn't have met all the people I have or gone to the places I've gone to."

'Ran,' Shinichi looked at the girl. Ran smiled, "Come on, Shinichi. I don't want to spend the whole day sitting on a bench." She grabbed Shinichi's arm and pulled him towards an attraction.

* * *

Beika, Japan

D'oliva Giardino

August 2, 6:53 PM

"Taku, why do you have to be so good at everything?" Ran demanded, peering past the large stuffed panda bear to glare at Shinichi.

"Oh come on, that wasn't skill, that was sheer luck." Shinichi retorted, "I usually suck at games that involve throwing baseballs at clowns."

Ran smiled, "Well of course… 'Cause you're handier with your _feet_."

"Like hell I am," Shinichi muttered, 'I guess being forced to play baseball with Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi paid off.'

"Oh yeah, I wanted to ask you this but I completely forgot. Did Kasuma plan the entire day?" Ran's eyes peeked over the panda bear's head.

"She made sure we went to Tropical Land and she set up the seven 'o clock reservation but she left me to choose everything else." Shinichi explained, 'Well… there's also that present that she bought _without_ my knowledge. Apparently it's sitting on Ran's bed, unless Kasuma said that just to freak me out. And she refused to tell me what's inside..That's the fact I'm most worried about.'

Shinichi stopped in front of a small restaurant and opened the door, pausing to let Ran enter before walking in himself. Shinichi walked up to the reservation booth and said to the man at the booth, "Uh, we reserved a table for two."

"Name?" the man asked.

"Ku—No, no, I mean Kazuki." Shinichi answered.

"Hmm, I wonder if you're from the Kazuki family that helped finance this restaurant." The man murmured, "Please follow me."

"Uh, actually," Shinichi began, "We don't belong to a Kazuki family. Our friend used her name to set up this reservation."

"Ah, I see." The man set the two menus he had brought along on a small table by the window. "Well, take a look through our menu and your waiter will be along shortly."

"Arigato," Ran answered. The man nodded and walked back to the entrance. Ran set the stuffed animal under the table and took a seat in the seat across from Shinichi. Ran picked up a menu and mumbled, "Is the Kazuki family he was talking about Kasuma's family?"

Shinichi shrugged, "No idea, but I guess it could be."

"Oh," Ran looked briefly at Shinichi, "Why wasn't the reservation under your name, Shinichi?"

'It'd be too dangerous.' Shinichi flipped through the menu as he responded, "Kasuma-chan did that on her own accord. She probably thought of using my name but decided against it." 'I also directly told her not to use my name.'

Just then, a young woman in a white shirt, black pants, and a dark green apron approached their table. She smiled, "Hello, I will be your server tonight, are you two ready to order?"

Shinichi looked at Ran who nodded, "We're ready. I'd like your Seafood Alfredo and a Cherry Italian Soda."

The woman wrote down the order and turned to Ran, "And I'll take the Five Cheese Ziti al Forno and Raspberry Lemonade."

"Is that all for now?" the woman asked.

Shinichi glanced at Ran who was pointing at the dessert section in the menu. "Can we order dessert now and have it brought out later?"

"Of course. What would you like for dessert?"

Ran spoke up first this time, "How about a Zeppoli."

The waitress nodded, "And Tiramisu." Shinichi finished, closing the menu.

The waitress collected the two menus and added, "I'll be back with your drinks." She walked away.

Ran looked around the restaurant, "This is a really nice place, cozy and not too crowded. Maybe I should bring Otou-san and Conan-kun here." She looked out the window, "Wow, this table has such a great_ view_! You can see Tokyo Tower so clearly from here!"

Shinichi smiled, "Nice choice huh? And you could bring Oo-chan and that kid when KID is captured." 'Though, I've already been here once when Kasuma dragged me here and nearly gave me a heart attack because I thought she had found out my secret already.'

"I know what's been bothering me!" Ran exclaimed. Shinichi rose a questioning eyebrow, "Can I see the copy of the note. You did bring it right?" Shinichi nodded and handed her the note, "Here…" she pointed at a single line in the riddle, "This part seems uniquely KID, 'when the seconds bisects the twenty-second.' It's just like the note for the Memories egg… Oh, you weren't there."

"Uh, Conan told me about it. He said that in KID's note he wrote something along the lines of 'twelfth letter' which referred to the twelfth letter in the heist note."

"Yeah, and this seems to be like that heist letter." Ran concluded.

"Well… the English alphabet has twenty-six letters. The twenty-second would be…" Shinichi paused, running through the English alphabet. "'V'."

Their waitress returned with not only their drinks but their food as well. She placed the items on the table and retreated back into the kitchen. "And if you bisect a 'v'…" Shinichi continued, "Well, that would look like this.." Shinichi grabbed a sugar packet and a pen and lightly drew a 'v' with a line splitting it in half. "But what does that mean?"

"Shinichi…" Shinichi looked up at Ran. "You should probably eat that since you're paying ¥1540 for it."

He looked down at the food, "Yeah, I probably should." Shinichi grabbed a fork and stabbed the contents of the plate. As Shinichi and Ran finished the last of their food and drinks, the waitress returned in order to deliver the ordered desserts. There was a soft chime originating from inside Ran's bag and she pulled out the object. "It's a message from Kasuma."

"What's it about?" Shinichi asked.

"Let's see… it's regarding that kidnapping you wanted to look into." Ran looked at the contents of the message.

'Hm, the kidnapping case Kasuma refused to let me help with. I didn't think she'd actually go through with it when she said she'd take any cases that came up. I guess that implies she herself is a detective.' "What did she say?" Shinichi asked, "Kasuma-chan didn't give me any details when we saw her at the entrance of Tropical Land."

"She said, 'The kidnapping case has been solved. If Shinichi-kun wants to know about the details, then tell him to contact me at whatever time is convenient for him. And Ran-san… DON'T let him inquire about the case during your date.' And that's all she wrote."

Shinichi grunted and crossed his arms, "She couldn't even give some sort of hint as to what happened? Taku," Shinichi took a bite from his Tiramisu then diverted his attention to the small sugar packet with the bisected 'v' on it. "I guess it can't be helped. Anyway, it's this upcoming heist I should be focusing on."

"Ne, Shinichi. Wasn't one of the hints the thief gave us something about a clock face?" Ran paused, one of the Italian doughnuts in her hand, ready to be dipped into the chocolate sauce as she looked at Shinichi. "Again it's like KID's note regarding the Memories egg."

"In that note, you were supposed to line the 'twelfth letter' up with the clock face." Shinichi mumbled, almost to himself. "If you do that with a bisected 'v', the actual letter would make it eleven 'o five… and with the letter bisected, it would be… let's see, the bisector would be on the twelve on the clock face making the time eleven 'o six. Is that the time they're asking for? That's very specific."

"Congratulations Mei-tan-tei-san, you've solved your very first Masked Magician note. We should celebrate." Ran congratulated, a tint of sarcasm coating her voice.

"What and eating dinner at an Italian restaurant isn't celebrating?" Shinichi replied, gesturing wildly with his hands at the building they were inside.

"I guess it could be… Hey!" Ran exclaimed as Shinichi reached over and grabbed a doughnut from off her plate. Shinichi grinned and took a big bite out of the doughnut. "Eat your own dessert!" she ordered.

Shinichi looked down at his plate and placed an overly exaggerated pout on his face. "But I _did_." Ran looked at the plate and sighed. "You finished it already?" Ran looked at the doughnut in Shinichi's hand and made a swipe for it. Shinichi dodged her hand easily and smirked, "You still want this back even if I already bit out of it?"

Ran blushed, "Of course not! That's gross!" Shinichi grinned at his success and took another bite out of the pastry. Ran submitted and finished off the remains of her plate. "There, now you can't steal anything else…" she paused, "You STOLE! That's against the law!"

"Where in the law does it say that taking food from someone else's plate is illegal?" Shinichi retorted, "I was helping you finish your food… you should be thankful." Shinichi lifted his chin higher than it was earlier, his blue eyes still fixed on Ran.

"Hai, hai," Ran brushed off, "Thank you _so_ much."

"That's much better!" Shinichi exclaimed, a small smile ruining his previous expression. Shinichi asked their waitress, who had stopped by just then, and asked for the bill. The woman nodded and collected the remaining plates on the table. The bill arrived shortly after and Shinichi pulled out his wallet. "Let's see… so the total is ¥3912. Alright." He pulled out the correct amount and placed it in the packet the receipt came in. Before Shinichi closed the packet, Ran slipped in a small amount of money into it. "It's a tip," she explained. Shinichi nodded and stood up, grabbing the panda from under the table and exiting the restaurant with Ran right beside him.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Higure Estate

August 3, 10:00 PM

Shinichi and Kasuma approached the expansive Higure estate where police officers were already stationed. The two of them approached the large black gate as a loud voice stopped them from entering. "Hey, you two! This place isn't open for civilians!"

Inspector Nakamori, practically running up to the gate, stopped when he recognized one of the faces. "Kudo Shinichi? Right? What the hell are you doing here?"

"How cold Inspector, I wanted to help catch those two phantom thieves." Shinichi remarked.

"Oh… I see," the Inspector eyed him suspiciously. "Are you really Kudo?" the gate opened and Nakamori grabbed Shinichi's cheek and tugged. "Ow, ow, ow! Kebu… that's my _face_!"

Nakamori pulled back, "Ok, you're clear… Now who are you?" he looked at Kasuma.

"Kazuki Kasuma. I just came to survey the scene."

"Oh? And are _you_ a thief in disguise?" his hand aimed for her cheek. Kasuma batted his hand away roughly, "Don't you _dare_! I'm just here to see how tight the security is. I know what's too much or too little since I've been up against those two! I'm not planning on staying. Once I look around for a bit, I'm leaving to see off Hattori-kun and Kazuha-chan." Kasuma walked past the shocked inspector and into the estate.

Shinichi whistled quietly, "Note to self: Don't annoy Kasuma-chan."

"Damn right." Kasuma sighed, "What he's doing is just pointless. Even if he goes through everyone and pinches everyone, those two still get through right? It was the same thing in Europe and America. We ended up having to _lessen_ the amount attending the heists to avoid easy access to a disguise."

Shinichi smirked, "Even with less people, they still manage."

Kasuma closed her eyes briefly, "Guess that shows how good they are at their job… This, in turn, allows us _detectives_ to sharpen our own skills in order to catch thieves like them."

"You're a detective," Shinichi asked as they entered the estate.

"In a sense," Kasuma peered at Shinichi, "I tended to assist Hakuba with the heists KID pulled… You know Hakuba right? I'm sure you've met at least once."

"Yeah, I've met him. He's the high school detective with the hawk right?" Shinichi said looking around the interior of the house.

"Hai, Watson. That bird has proved quite useful, especially in spotting out blood. The poor girl is always around crime." Kasuma sighed, shaking her head.

"Girl? Why did he name his hawk Watson if the bird is female?" Shinichi asked, puzzled.

Kasuma shrugged, "That just shows you how much of a Holmes addict he is… I believe we're about to be yelled at."

"Wha-?" Shinichi started to ask.

"OI, who are you two and why are you in my house?" the assumed owner of the house yelled at the two of them.

Kasuma immediately spoke up, "We are with Nakamori-kebu. I'm sorry if our appearance caught you off guard. May I ask with whom I am speaking with?"

"I will not answer any questions by you unless I have a better description of who _you_ are." The owner, a man of average stature with jet black hair and a brown suit peered down at them with a growing frown.

"Oh, of course, how impolite of me. My name is Kazuki Kasuma and this is my partner." Kasuma bowed.

"Kudo Shinichi right?" a female voice piped up. "You're Kudo Shinichi-kun that famous high-school detective right? I'd recognize that face anywhere."

The speaker was situated on the second floor stairwell and glanced at the two teenagers. The speaker also looked like she was in her late teens possibly early twenties and was wearing a dark green shirt and jeans. "Otou-san, please be nice. I'm sure these two came to help protect the Ocean Sapphire… that _is_ why you are here right?"

"Hai, we came with Nakamori-kebu." Shinichi answered.

"Humph, that silly inspector that thinks by stationing guards in every square inch of this place he can easily catch the thieves." The man spat out.

"Otou-san!" the girl whined.

"Um, excuse me but may I ask for your names?" Kasuma inquired.

"Oh!" the girl exclaimed, "My name is Higure Yume. And his name is Higure Aruku," she first pointed to herself then moved her hand towards her father.

"Oh, did a detective with a small moustache arrive earlier tonight?" Kasuma asked, looking at the two Higure's.

"Were you referring to me?" a gruff voice cut in. Mouri Kogoro appeared from the second floor hallway and glared at Shinichi and Kasuma who were still situated on the first floor. "By the way… who _are_ you?" Mouri asked Kasuma.

Kasuma nearly collapsed as he said that but she didn't get a chance to answer. "Mou, Otou-san. I told you, this is Kazuki Kasuma. She recently transferred to Teitan High from… was it England or America?" Ran appeared and stopped behind her father.

"Uh, America, I was in Europe before I moved to America." Kasuma looked up at Ran.

Higure Aruku sighed, finishing his descent down the stairs, "Taku, I don't need an entire police force and some wannabe detectives roaming around my house." He grabbed a few items from what looked like a closet and left the house.

"I apologize for my father's behavior." Yume said looked from Mouri and Ran to Shinichi and Kasuma, "There are a few police officers in the dining room."

"Sorry but I'll pass," Kasuma said. "I'm gonna take a look around."

Aruku's head popped back into the house, "Just don't touch anything!"

"Hai, hai. I'll tie my hands behind my back if I have to." Kasuma said, flicking her hand around lightly.

"Maybe you should," Aruku huffed, starting to depart again.

"Otou-san!" Yume exclaimed.

Kasuma immediately turned and walked towards one of the doors on the first floor. Shinichi walked up the stairs and joined Mouri and Ran. "Oi, and where the hell have you been, tantei bozu?" Mouri pressed.

"Jiken, ji-ken. I've been getting cases non-stop recently." Shinichi explained. "So where's the dining room?"

* * *

Beika, Japan

Higure Estate

August 3, 10:10 PM

"Wait, what are you doing?"

A smirk appeared on the face of a seventeen year old teenager with messy brown hair and deep blue eyes. The teen pulled out a spray can and pulled it in front of the victim's face and sprayed, covering his mouth and nose with a gloved hand. The victim collapsed and the teen pocketed the spray can that had been filled with sleeping gas. The teen grabbed the brim of his black hat and tugged it down over his eyes. "What am I doing?... Good question. I'm giving my partner an entrance." The teen bent down over the unconscious man, "Gomen nasai, but I'll have to borrow you for tonight." The teen replaced his hat with the sleeping man's hat, 'I pass the spotlight over to you now, aibou.'

* * *

Beika, Japan

Higure Estate

August 3, 10:20 PM

"Alright, I'm off!" Kasuma announced.

"Where are you going Kasuma?" Ran asked the girl.

"I promised I'd see Hattori-kun and Kazuha-chan off at the train station." Kasuma explained.

"Oh right, they're going back to Osaka tonight." Ran murmured.

Kasuma walked to the dining room door, "Ja na. Have fun trying to catch those thieves." Kasuma opened the doors and left the room.

Inspector Megure sighed, "Are you sure about this Kudo-kun?"

Shinichi nodded, "I am. KID and Mage are planning to come at eleven 'o six, although that's a _very_ specific time. Does Mage usually do that, kebu? Cause KID usually doesn't."

"I'm not sure. I don't hear much about Mage except the general details. But he hasn't stuck to his usual pattern so everything's subject to change." Megure sighed.

Higure Yume walked in with a teenager around the same age as herself, "Oh, Yume-san."

"Hello again, Inspector," Yume looked at her companion, "This is my twin brother Higure Nemuri."

The teenager nodded. Shinichi chuckled quietly to himself, 'Dream and Sleep, huh? This is an interesting family.'

"Alright," Yume announced, "It's getting pretty late so we have a meal prepared for everyone while the announced time approaches. If everyone will gather at the table over here, we can start serving the food."

* * *

Beika, Japan

Higure Estate

August 3, 11:04 PM

"Are you sure the sapphire will be secure in here?" Megure asked, peering into the room bearing the sapphire.

"Definitely," Nemuri answered. "There's a weight sensor in that room so if any of the thieves try to get in, they'll be trapped. Along with the sensor, father also installed infra-red beams throughout this room so if they bypass the sensor, they'll also have to deal with infra-red beams that'll trip the security system if the beams are broken… It may not seem right with what my father has shown you of his character but he would _love_ to catch those thieves. He use to be a cop so I guess the urge to stop crime still flows through him."

"Hmm, well everything seems to be under control here so let's go back to the dining room and wait just a little bit longer." Nakamori announced.

Shinichi didn't budge, "We only have two… no one minuet until the announced time. Why don't we just wait here?"

"Baka, that'll just add to the chaos." Nakamori yelled.

"Ju…Kyu…Hachi…Nana…Roku…Go…Yon…San…Ni…Ichi…Zero." The lights blacked out.

"What the hell?"

"It's them! Don't let them escape! Stop them!"

"Don't worry. The security system will catch them."

There was a loud thud and all those who heard it turned towards the origin. A light appeared, "Flashlight?"

"No, it's my watch," Shinichi cut in, "There's a flashlight in it as well."

Shinichi ran to the origin of the thump and saw three guards on the ground, unconscious. The door the guards had been guarding was still swinging lightly. "Nemuri-san, how do I get to the roof?" Shinichi asked.

"The staircase on your left." Nemuri answered.

Shinichi made a break for the door and flew up the stairs, breaking out onto the roof a minuet later. As the metal door that opened up to the roof banged against the wall, a thief in front of him jumped and whirled around, a white mask hitting the ground. KID pulled his cape in front of him, the wind whipping the cape around, causing it to billow around KID's form. KID moved slightly to block Mage from Shinichi's sight as Mage repositioned the mask. "Long time, no see, Kudo-san," KID purred.

"How'd you get up here so fast?" Shinichi demanded.

"Hi-me-tsu," Mage piped up in KID's voice. The thief behind KID turned and faced Shinichi with purple eyes. Shinichi ran towards them. The thieves, who were already by the rooftop edge bowed, KID tipping his white top hat as he bowed and Mage extending his right foot foreword as he bowed. The next thing he knew, the two of them fell backwards and into open air. Shortly after, two gliders appeared and flew away. Shinichi cussed and searched the roof for a new note.

**Final Notes: Whew! Complete chapter three: check. Move onto chapter four: check. Alright, some comments: First that pattern I mentioned in earlier chapters is still under way, can anyone figure it out? Shinichi gets to hang around for a bit before he, unwillingly, has to get back to his cases. (sad face) Alrighty, I put lots of different languages in this story, I'm sorry if the translations aren't correct (I pulled them up from the Internet so… BLAME THE INTERNET!) Kasuma (in case you were curious) used several (in order): Japanese, Spanish, Latin, Korean, Tagalog, Visayan, Greek, French, Italian, Russian, Hebrew, Gailic, and Swahili. The restaurant Ran and Shinichi went to I named D'oliva Giardino which is Italian for 'Olive Garden.' As some may have figured out by now, the restaurant was named after the Italian restaurant Olive Garden. The items Ran and Shinichi ordered are also from the Olive Garden menu (I do not own) The main meal items were Seafood Alfredo and Five Cheese Ziti al Forno. Description of Seafood Alfredo: Sautéed shrimp and scallops tossed with creamy fettuccine alfredo. Description of Five Cheese Ziti al Forno: Ziti pasta in a five cheese marinara sauce, baked with a layer of melted Italian cheeses. The desserts were Tiramisu and Zeppoli. Description of Tiramisu: A layer of creamy custard set atop espresso-soaked ladyfingers. Description of Zeppoli: Soft, traditional Italian doughnuts dusted with powered sugar, served with chocolate sauce for dipping. I calculated the price for the items (using the Internet again… the wonders the Internet gives us) with a yen conversion site, but I will be sad if the currency calculations are wrong. Internet… don't fail me now! (If the conversions or the translations were wrong please let me know)**

**Let's see… I think that's all I wanted to point out so I hope you all liked this chapter. If you did or didn't, please tell me (reviews) and let me know what I should keep or change.**

**Latin Translations (rough)**

**Opus-Work/Load**

**Japanese Translations (rough)**

**Oi-Hey**

**Hountou ni-Really**

**Chotto matte-Wait a second**

**Uso-No way**

**Shikashi-But/However**

**Shikata nai-It can't be helped**

**Urusei-Shut up**

**Mou-Geez**

**Ne-Hey/Say**

**Hayaku-Hurry up**

**Arigato-Thank you**

**Sugoi-Awesome/Cool**

**Unagi-Eel**

**Hai-Yes**

**Masaka-Could it be**

**Chigau-Wrong**

**Datte-But**

**Taku-Geez/My God**

**Sou-Right**

**Iie-No**

**Usotsuki-Liar**

**Meitantei-Great Detective**

**Yume-Dream**

**Aruku-Ask/to ask**

**Higure-Sunset**

**Tantei-Detective**

**Bozu-Brat**

**Jiken-case**

**Aibou-Partner**

**Ja na-Bye/See you**

**Nemuri-Sleep**

**Himitsu-Secret**

38


	5. Extra: Relocation

**A/N: Hi ya'll! I've returned…No not with a chapter.. But WAIT! Don't leave just yet. I've prepared a special lil side story for those who just want something to pass the time. Why? Do I need a reason? Well, even if I don't, I've got one prepared for those eyes who are curious. My actual next chapter (whose name will be 'Emerald Green') has been GREATLY detained because of Writer's Blocks that keep popping up and scaring the crap out of me. And in scaring the crap out of me, they have succeeded in bringing my ideas for this chapter further within my poor little brain. Poor ideas… they're scared out of their wits! : (**

**But wait again! One of the ideas that haven't retreated to the recesses of my brain has driven me to write this little background story concerning Kasuma and Hakuba… who seem to have a little more history than I first planned (how in the world did that happen?) *shrug* I BLAME THE PLOT BUNNIES! ('cause apparently there are such things as 'plot bunnies') This idea is sooo great that I've decided to stick to it… Meaning? Wellll….. **_**meaning**_** every once in a while, probably when I'm stuck for a long period of time on the real chapter, I will try to entertain you all by giving you an Extra! Yay Extras! Most of these Extras will consist of Kasuma and her back story (as well as a few Mage heists from Europe or America). There won't be much of an order to these extras, so don't be surprised if the time frames jump around.**

**Kasuma: Humph… Azarath probably doesn't **_**have**_** time to give me a proper back story in the 'real' chapters.**

**Azarath: B-b-but Kasuma! That's it exactly! I have sooo much other fun stuff planned for this story. Gomen, gomen! *glares* Why do you think I'm adding Extras to this?**

**Kasuma (mumbling): Because you can't come up with original material.. It doesn't take a meitantei to figure **_**that**_** out.**

**Azarath: *weeps* My character's mean… Wait…. WHY IS MY CHARACTER MEAN? I DIDN'T MAKE HER MEAN! Now someone will shoot you! Beware! Mua ha ha ha ha!**

**Kasuma: *laughs slightly evilly* I'm just a good actress… I have to be with what my parents went through. And if **_**someone**_** bothered to inform readers of this in the story, people would get **_**why **_**I **_**am**_**! Oh yeah… And your threats are empty and you know it!**

**Azarath: … NOW…Umm... ON WITH THE SHOW!**

**Kasuma: DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT!

* * *

**

Extra: Relocation

* * *

"I hope you'll like it here, Kasuma." A woman with shoulder length blonde hair turned, setting the gym bag in her hand at the foot of the stairs.

"Thank you, Mrs. Hakuba." The twelve year old girl mumbled, staring down at her black luggage.

The woman sighed, looking at the girl behind her. "Come now, I may be British but I understand Japanese very well. I don't mind you speaking in your native tongue." She studied the girl further, "And young lady," Kasuma froze at the sudden, but gentle, reprimand in the woman's voice, "Your English needs work! I don't know _how_ your family understood you with that strange accent you're carrying on."

"Gomen nasai, Hakuba-san," Kasuma bowed slightly, a small smile fighting to break through the carefully placed mask upon the girl's features.

The woman sighed again, "When I hear 'Hakuba-san,' I think of my husband… Do I look male?"

Kasuma let out a snicker, much to her own disappointment and bowed again, "Gomen…" Kasuma trailed off.

"It's either 'Mother,' 'Mom' or 'Helen.'"

"…Helen?" Kasuma looked back down at her luggage, "Where should I put this?" she lifted the black baggage slightly.

"Oh! Right, how could I forget?" Helen lightly slapped her forehead, "Baka, baka, baka! Hm… I've already started making dinner since I have a lot of ingredients I need to get rid of so I can't leave the kitchen for long…" Helen glanced at the clock on the wall, "School should be over soon… Saguru should be home soon…. You remember him right? It's probably been around seven years since you've seen each other…" Helen was interrupted by the front door opening followed by a fairly loud, "I'm home!"

"Right on time!" Helen announced, "Saguru, can you please show Kasuma to her room? Oh, and a short tour of the house might prove useful."

"Ka-suma? You mean _Takashi_ Kasuma-chan?" Hakuba walked into the kitchen and caught sight of a girl his age seated in one of the chairs silently reading a book. She looked up and met Hakuba's gaze, smiling slightly. "Well," the girl began. "Now it's Kazuki Kasuma but yes… Takashi Kasuma."

Hakuba sent a rather confused look to his mother. "When did you bring this up? I don't remember being told about any of this."

"You weren't," Helen smiled, in the middle of chopping up some vegetables. "Because I got word of this late last night. Kasuma's uncle called me from New York and asked if I was able to take Kasuma in."

Hakuba quirked an eyebrow, "And the uncle? Couldn't _he_ have taken care of Kasuma-chan?"

"My uncle moves around a lot. And he doesn't have much time to take care of me. Even though we hadn't heard from you and your family for a while, he knew you had moved to Europe and thought you could watch over me." Kasuma closed the book and looked up at Hakuba.

"So… Can you please help Kasuma bring her stuff into the guest bedroom, Saguru?" Helen asked again.

"Uh… sure," Hakuba answered stepping aside as Kasuma moved over to the black bag by the stairs. Helen's head popped out of the kitchen door frame, "You'll have to take that red gym bag, Saguru. And while you two are at it, you should spend some time to catch up!" Hakuba grabbed the bag and led Kasuma up the staircase and down the hall to the third door on the left. Hakuba opened the door and set the gym bag down by the bed, "Well, this is the guest bedroom." Kasuma nodded and set the other bag down, opening it up as she did. "Uh… do you need any help? With unpacking and such?"

"No. It's not like I brought much stuff anyway." Kasuma pulled out a laptop and placed it on the bed along with a small jewelry box and a small stack of books.

Hakuba looked at the suitcase, "Don't you have some clothes with you?"

"Idiot," Kasuma mumbled, "Of course I do. They're in the gym bag." Hakuba started to ask another question before he was interrupted, "They were the only ones at my uncle's house…. And in case you were curious about why I have so little with me, it's because my house burned down and I would greatly appreciate it if you didn't pursue the topic further." Hakuba nodded slowly and looked out the door, "Well then… how about that tour my mother mentioned earlier?"

* * *

"Hey mom?" Helen looked over at her son. "Yes?" Hakuba stared at the stairs behind him, "Why isn't Kasuma-chan with her parents?"

"Her family was killed… or should I say murdered."

"Murdered!" Hakuba gasped, staring at the stairs again. "Yes," Helen affirmed, "Her uncle told me that when Kasuma was gathering food and supplies for her family, someone stopped by her home and started the fire that killed them. The police don't know if they were killed beforehand or if they were burned to death, the three bodies there were charred badly…. Please don't pester Kasuma about that, the incident is still fresh in her mind, I don't want to scar her any more than she already is."

"Three bodies? Did she have a step-mother or step-father?" Hakuba glanced at his mother.

"Oh heavens no." Helen moved the contents of the pan in her hand off the stove and into a bowl, "I thought I told you… her parents were very excited when they called that one time seven years ago. Her little brother was the third body in the rubble. The two of them were very close, from the start of little Takeo's life to the very end… Dinner's ready, can you please get Kasuma?"

"Sure," Hakuba nodded, starting for the stairs. Hakuba turned down the hall, "Kasuma-chan, dinner's ready." There was no answer. "I'm coming in," Hakuba warned, grabbing the door knob and turning. He stopped short, "Ka..suma?" Said girl jumped from where she was seated on the bed, laptop out in front of her. She hastily shut the laptop closed and mumbled a sentence in what sounded like Spanish. "You… speak Spanish?"

"Yeah… so what." Kasuma pulled a pair of headphones out of her ears, "I know tons of different languages."

"Uh, like I was saying earlier… Dinner's ready." Kasuma jumped off the bed and departed the room, mumbling a quiet 'Arigato' before descending the stairs. She found her way to the dining room where Helen was finishing with setting the last item on the menu on the large table. "Hey, Kasuma-chan, how many languages _do_ you know?"

"In case you haven't noticed, Hakuba, we're not in Japan. You don't need to use honorifics here in Europe. And how many different languages? I'm fluent in Japanese, Spanish, French, Latin, Tagalog, Visayan, and English… although apparently my accent's not quite right?" Kasuma glanced at Helen. "And I'm semi-fluent in German, Russian, Italian, Arabic, and Greek… possibly Gaelic, but I haven't been practicing so I've probably lost it by now."

Helen whistled, "Did your parents teach you…?" Kasuma nodded, "I swear, those two are fluent in practically every language out there, dead _and_ alive. You've got to get serious Saguru, or Kasuma here is gonna beat you bad."

"I don't care. Three languages are enough for me." Hakuba shrugged, piling his plate with food from several dishes in front of him.

"English, Japanese, and Latin right?" Hakuba stared at Kasuma, his expression asking 'How did you know?' Kasuma shrugged, "Lucky guess." Helen grabbed a spoon and plopped a spoonful of rice on Kasuma's plate, "W-w-wait…!" Kasuma stammered.

Helen waved the spoon in the air, "You need some food, child. And you don't mind some rice now do you?"

Kasuma pouted, "I guess I don't." Kasuma sighed and found some more food to place on her plate. The three of them were silent for several minuets until Helen looked over at Kasuma, "How soon would you like to go back to school? I can get you enrolled in Saguru's school whenever you're ready." Kasuma swallowed the chunk of chicken she had in her mouth and shrugged, "It doesn't really matter. Whenever is fine."

"Alright," Helen nodded. "It's too late in the week for it to really matter so… next week? On Monday, to be specific. That's alright, right?" Kasuma nodded in the affirmative and the room was silent once again.

* * *

"Alright… careful… watch the door… now… how about over there?... Slowly, Saguru! There's no fire here!... Good, set it down…. SLOWLY!... there.. Now push it against the wall… How many times do I have to say 'slowly'! Finally!... Alright, Kasuma. There you go." Helen stood back examining the desk while Kasuma and Hakuba withered down to the floor, both of them leaning against the brown, wooden desk. "Jeez, why did the old office have to be on the opposite end of the house… And on the first floor?"

Kasuma poked her head around the side of the piece of furniture to look at Hakuba… well, to be specific, Hakuba's leg, "At least it wasn't _too_ heavy…" she smiled, "And there were three of us."

"Oh, Kasuma." Helen looked down at the girl, "You'll have to remind me to take you shopping tomorrow. You'll need more clothes… one gym bag is not enough for a growing girl such as yourself."

"Uh, sure," Kasuma nodded. "I hope I remember…"

**Kasuma: Like I was saying… Your threats are empty! Empty I tell you!**

**Azarath: Uruchai! I'm busy… pester me after I finish the fourth chapter!**

**Kasuma: Uruchai…? That's not a word.**

**Azarath: Too bad!**

**Final Notes: Well… that concludes Extra Number 1! Stay tuned for the eventual update of chapter four! I hope I don't disappoint anyone by taking an uber long time to update… LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST! Please Review! I would very much like to know what you think 'bout my story and such! I would very much appreciate it. I will try and find time to bake tons of cyber cookies as gifts for reviews and comments. : ) Oh right... I have no idea what Hakuba's mom's name is so I just picked one.. If she really _does_ have a given name, someone please tell me so I can edit it.  
**

**Kasuma: Now hurry up and finish chapter four so I can pester you!**

**Azarath: Uruchai!**


	6. Emerald Green (4)

**A/N: I'm back! And better than ever! (Though I can't say that for this story… FYI, it'll go downhill soon-for our characters at least) My, my, Kasuma will have so much **_**fun**_** with Ran **_**and**_** Shinichi around. Be prepared. Oh and updates _should_ be slightly faster than they have been because its summer and I have no plans to go anywhere. Yay! More heists more often!**

**Warnings: Scary stunt(s) that could end a life if executed incorrectly. Kids, don't try this at home!**

**Acknowledgements: DCMonkey4EVR, who suggested I include a 24-hour center. (followed by a conversation along the lines of: DC-Can I write a chapter? Azarath-…No… DC-Why not? Azarath-*shrug* I don't know. DC- Can I come up with a murder trick? Azarath-No… I got that already but… you can come up with a different way to murder Hakuba… Other than a gunshot, poisoning, or a motorcycle crash! DC-YES!) Murder? Hakuba? What's going on? *evil grin appears* You'll have to wait 'til chapters 14-22 to get an answer! Mua ha ha!**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): A visit by my relatives from Florida has detained my work.. : ( Gomen. Although it's summer I've been busying myself with reading many of the stories on my Favorites list and my story was neglected for some time. But here it is!

* * *

**

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Emerald Green

* * *

Beika, Japan

Higure Estate

August 3, 11:15 PM

"Let me guess… You found a heist note." Megure droned, massaging his temples lightly.

"Uh, yeah… here." Shinichi handed the inspector the note. Nakamori craned his head around to read the note as well. "There's no riddle this time Kebu."

"'I think it's time to give you all a break from Mage's mind-boggling riddles. I'll give it nice and straight-forward. Three days from now, when the sun retreats behind the Earth, we will alight upon the Haido City Museum and snatch the Flower.'" Megure sighed, "This time it's signed KID… But even though he said he'd give it straight-forward, KID can't resist putting a riddle in it."

"No, he's right, it is 'nice and straight-forward'," Shinichi piped up. The other officers gave questioning looks, "When he mentions the sun retreating behind the Earth, he means sunset. And since its summer, the days will be longer and sunset arrives later than it usually would. And the part about the flower refers to item of interest; it's not a very complicated riddle. However, his knowledge of the solar system isn't very wide, what with him saying the sun retreats behind a planet when really it's our side of the earth that's retreating."

"But why give us a break? KID doesn't usually do that!" Nakamori exclaimed.

"Probably because they don't want police officers missing when the heist comes. The riddle for today's heist was much more complicated and there were only three days until the announced day. He probably didn't want us to take too long in solving the riddle." Shinichi shrugged. "Well have any of them been following their usual schedule?"

"You have a point there." Nakamori growled. He turned to the other officers, "Alright, our job here is done. Tomorrow, we will confront the Haido City Museum and cover details to keep this new jewel safe!"

"Ne, Nakamori-kebu… do you even know what their target _is_?" Shinichi asked.

Nakamori froze and swiveled his head towards the high school detective, "DOES IT MATTER?"

Shinichi laughed shakily, his hands in front of his head, "Yeah, it sorta does."

Nakamori regained his composure and straightened his jacket, "We'll look into it tomorrow. It's too late tonight."

The officers retreated into the patrol cars outside the gates and they drove away. Only Shinichi, Ran, and Mouri remained. "Well," Shinichi looked at the other two figures by the gate, "I should probably go."

"Do you want a ride Shinichi?" Ran asked.

Shinichi shook his head, "It's fine; I walked here. Remember, my house is nearby."

"Right," Ran waved weakly. "See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Shinichi walked away and towards his house. A shrill ring grabbed his attention and he snatched his phone from his pocket, "Moshi, moshi?"

"Hey Kudo, how's it going? Or… maybe the heist already happened?" Heiji asked.

"Oh yeah, the heist just ended. Everyone's goin home, including me. And aren't you going back to Osaka?" Shinichi pressed.

"Yeah, I'm on the train right now… what is it wrong to use your phone on the train?" Heiji said.

"Uh no, no," Shinichi chuckled, "Never mind. What was the reason you called?"

"So… I can't call just because I felt like it?" Heiji said, voice dripping with feigned hurt.

"Well, that's not what I meant… but you normally call with some sort of reason like a visit or something about a case…" Shinichi began.

"Okay, okay. I got it. I wanted to know about the heist note you probably found. What did it say?"

"Well, I don't have the letter with me so this is from what I remember: I think it's time to give you all a break from Mage's mind-boggling riddles. I'll give it nice and straight-forward. Three days from now, when the sun retreats behind the Earth, we will alight upon the Haido City Museum and snatch the Flower. That's what KID said."

"KID this time?" Heiji asked.

"Yeah, it's KID this time. They'll probably continue to switch off, especially if they really are working together… Hey, did Kasuma really come to the station?" Shinichi asked, staring at the ground.

"Yeah, she did… Why?" Heiji answered slowly.

"I'm just checking her alibi. How long did she stay there?" Shinichi continued.

"She was there when we arrived at ten thirty and stayed until after the train left at eleven. Why are you checking her alibi?" Heiji continued.

"It's just to make sure she wasn't KID or Mage in disguise. And since it takes about ten minuets to get from the estate to the station and another ten to make a round trip then…"

"Her alibi is solid." Heiji finished.

"Exactly… Speak of the devil… I gotta go Hattori." Shinichi shut the phone. Kasuma was slowing down from a run to a slow jog as she approached her house, pulling out a small object as she did. "Kasuma-chan!"

Kasuma looked up, "Oh, Shinichi-kun. I assume the heist is done now? How'd it go?"

"Badly, they got away with the sapphire." Shinichi mumbled.

"Hmm, that's too bad," Kasuma inserted the key into the designated slot on the gate separating her house from the road. "But there's always next time right?"

"Yeah," Shinichi looked at the black, metal gate. "Ne, Kasuma-chan, did you happen to see any of the thieves? They should have passed over you at some point if you were coming down that street." Shinichi pointed to the street Kasuma was just on.

"Sorry, I was inside the twenty-four hour center that's a few blocks from here. I wasn't by any windows. Sorry." Kasuma apologized, opening the gate.

"Oh, that's alright… Were you at the train station until a little past eleven?" Shinichi changed the subject.

"Yeah… why?" Kasuma asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"I-I'm just checking your alibi." Shinichi said, "Just to make sure you had no chance to get back to the estate."

"And to make sure I wasn't KID or Mage in disguise right?" Shinichi nodded slowly. Kasuma laughed, "Even if my alibi didn't stand for tonight, that wouldn't account for all the other times I _was_ there when KID or Mage pulled a heist." She paused inside the gate, "Do you want to come in for a bit Shinichi-kun? It's a tad chilly out here."

"It's alright," Shinichi shrugged, "That's all I was curious about. Oyasumi nasai."

"Oyasumi…" Kasuma mumbled back, closing the gate to her house and walking down the pathway.

* * *

Internet

Instant Messenger via World Wide Web

August 4, 12:00 AM

_d0r0b0r0: Thx 4 catchin me back the Keshiki house._

_kk-kk8: welcome. Besides why would I let a fellow comrade in crime fall to certain death? I sorta made a vow a while ago… u do realize that right?_

_d0r0b0r0: sure whatev. But damn, today was cuttin it close… really close. Damn door made me drop my mask…. Ur not gonna spill right? U better not. Otherwise tantei-kun will have another murder on his hands_

_kk-kk8: yeah I no, I won't say a word…. Except maybe 2 jii-chan. Although dat info would be specifically 4 business purposes. Jii's not da type a person to spill info like that, esp. when requested not 2. Ur secret is safe with me : )_

_d0r0b0r0: I don't trust dat smile_

_kk-kk8: COME ON! I totally a trustworthy person…_

_d0r0b0r0: whatever stops the tears…whatever stops the tears. U got my email right?_

_kk-kk8: of course, I'm lookin at it in another tab_

_d0r0b0r0: sadly I couldn't get any more info den what's on the email. All I got on it was that it was rumored to be on the May Flower, hence the name…. U know the one I mean right? The ship that brought the pilgrims to America.. anyway, the lack of info aroused my curiosity_

_kk-kk8: yeah it's got me curious too. can't wait till da sixth… by da way, don't wear red contacts ever again. Dey make u look evil… or possessed_

_d0r0b0r0: …..oh sure, NOW u mock my attire. Besides, if u had any previous info bout me ud no dat I don't use the same thing twice… tho I may end up reusing some stuff, I'm running low on supplies._

_kk-kk8: doushite?_

_d0r0b0r0: two words: damn Hakuba_

_kk-kk8: hahahahaha…..of course HE finds a way to peeve u_

_d0r0b0r0: well usually when a certain _tantei_ always uses guns to try to shoot u down, u get peeved.. do u realize how many suits he's ruined by makin me crash…. Can I even keep track of all the different places I've crashed into? Doubt it_

_kk-kk8: try…. Id like to see how many locations uve ruined suits at_

_d0r0b0r0:…let's see…there was the Space Needle and the ferris wheel in Disneyland and Old_

_kk-kk8: Chotto matte… why was Hakuba in Seattle? Or Cali?_

_d0r0b0r0: he was on a summer vacay when I coincidentally planned a heist in his area… u can guess what he did next….anyway, where was i? there was the time I crashed RIGHT by Old Faithful… the damn water destroyed my suit… I liked that one a lot._

_kk-kk8: *snicker*_

_d0r0b0r0: URUSAI! let me continue… ure the one who wanted to hear all this. I also crashed right by the top of Multnomah Falls… twice… u know in Oregon. Anyway…oh yeah there was also the time I landed on the Statue of Liberty, right on top of the head-it took forever to get down from there…so. damn. hard. to. escape. with. out. wings. or. rope… I also crashed in the Delaware River, I had a cold for nearly two weeks….after that I felt so bad for Washington..and what's worse he crossed it during winter, WINTER ahhh! I'm getting off topic. K, I also fell into the Mississippi River, not as bad but still cold. There was also that time I landed on top of Cinderella's Castle in Disneyworld. damn that had hurt… I got a nasty scar from one of the towers_

_kk-kk8: *flinch* didn't need that image_

_d0r0b0r0: too late… that was just about it in America. In Europe I crashed onto the Eifel Tower tons of times. I think he did dat on purpose. i also crashed into the pantheon as well as the coliseum and the Forum Romanum.(at least the buildings were pretty sturdy. Smart people they were…those Romans) There was also Big Ben and the London Zoo (right by the lion's cage-angry cats they were) oh and the Tower of London, the Wellington Arch, Windsor Castle, Dublin Castle, the pool of the Garden of Remembrance, the Millennium Bridge-hopefully they replaced the stones that fell into the water… : ) – oh yeah, and I landed in the Rhine River, got another cold. I believe that was about all of them… unless I forgot some._

_kk-kk8: *whistles* god, and I thought _I_ had it bad with Hakuba._

_d0r0b0r0: yup, and it's even worse given Hakuba and I have a really good relationship._

_kk-kk8: whoa, whoa! Hold the denwa… Hakuba actually _has_ good relationships? Since when?_

_d0r0b0r0: I no, shocker right? …. But seriously, we have a good relationship.. and to answer ur last q, since four years, when Mage was born…. Well, not actually _when_ Mage was born but the year Mage was born….wow, we got fairly off topic_

_kk-kk8: oh well, the plan 4 da heist has already been covered, a lil off topic-ness is alright

* * *

_

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

August 4, 7:09 AM

"Alright… almost there… Yatta! I got through, finally!" Kasuma twisted the doorknob and walked into the third story room. She rolled up her lock picking kit and slipped it into her pocket.

"Do that again and I'm gonna have to turn you in." Shinichi mumbled, following her inside the room.

"Come on, Shinichi-kun, I'm not using these for crime or anything like that, I refuse to stand outside when I have the ability to get myself into a house. The same thing might not have happened to your own house if you _answered_ when I knocked… and rang the doorbell… and knocked again. I even tried chucking stones at your window! Taku," Kasuma sighed, "Is water the only thing that wakes you up?"

"Explosions work too," Shinichi grumbled, shaking his wet hair, trying to get rid of the excess water.

"Oi, oi, don't get the carpet all wet!" Kasuma scolded, "Besides, it wouldn't be pleasant for everyone in the neighborhood to wake up to a giant bomb goin' off! Though, I could try that sometime… it might be more effective than a cupful of water." Kasuma froze, "But then again, aren't you _glad_ I didn't wake you up at five a.m?"

There was a soft shuffling sound as Ran walked out, hair tousled and wearing light pink pajamas. She lazily glanced up at Kasuma and Shinichi and squeaked, "You two… already here?"

Kasuma smiled and nodded, "Though I had to use more water to get _this_ lazy bum out of bed."

"No, I mean how did you get _in_ here? I know I locked the door." Ran mumbled suppressing a yawn.

Kasuma patted her pocket, "I picked the lock to your house and Shinichi-kun's house… wasn't _too_ difficult."

"Mou Kasuma!" Ran moaned, furiously running a hand through her hair, slowly untangling her long brown hair. "I-I'll be right back." She disappeared behind her bedroom door.

"Where are you planning to drag us to today, Kasuma-cha…?" Shinichi asked trailing off as Kasuma walked towards Ran's room.

"Haud informatio," Kasuma stated, walking into the room and closing the door. Kasuma leaned against the bedroom wall, facing the wall as Ran got dressed. "So… Did you open the gift that was on your bed?"

"Nope."

"Aren't you curious?" Kasuma asked, staring at the door.

"Well, yeah I'm curious… but I'm also scared out of my wits to open it." Ran said, pulling a red shirt on.

Kasuma looked around, "Where did you—Ah, here it is." Kasuma exclaimed opening the closet on her right and pulling the present out. She examined the gift, "You started to open this?"

"Yeah, but I got worried when I saw something white so… I stuffed it into the closet."

"Mou Ran-san! It's not gonna bite you! Just open it," Kasuma held out the present.

"You know what's in it right?" Kasuma nodded, "That worries me further." Kasuma rolled her eyes and dropped the present onto Ran's bed. Ran eyed it suspiciously, "Did Shinichi agree on buying whatever is in this box?"

"Nope… he had no idea until I told him on the morning of your date." Kasuma smiled.

"But he wrote the card right?" Ran asked. Kasuma shook her head, "What! Then, who wrote that?" Ran pointed to the card that said in kanji 'To Ran From Shinichi.'

"I did." Kasuma stated casually.

Ran stared at the girl, "You know how to pick locks and you can forge signatures… Do you have a second job as a criminal?"

Kasuma crossed her arms and sat on the bed with a loud 'Humph.' "I am _not_ a criminal! That's mean Ran-san, hidoi! I learned how to forge so I wouldn't have to get parent signatures since my parents still live in America… You remember when Shinichi-kun and I were bickering that morning, right?" Ran nodded, "That was Shinichi-kun freaking out because his signature was on the box's card. And just like you, just now, he accused me of being a criminal. Taku, I guess people can't know how to forge without being seen as a criminal these days."

"Gomen, Kasuma. It's just… well, knowing how to forge because of a lack of parents isn't the first reason that comes to people's minds." Ran apologized.

"Okay, okay. Are you ready, Ran-san?"

Ran nodded and Kasuma dragged her out of the room and into the dining area. Shinichi was sitting on the floor again occasionally shaking his head to rid his hair of the water droplets. Kasuma walked up to the boy and smacked the back of his head, "Oi!" Shinichi exclaimed.

"Didn't I tell you not to get the carpet wet?" Ran giggled and looked at the two of them. "Oi, why are you laughing?" Kasuma turned on Ran. "Laughing at other people isn't nice!" She raised her chin and glared at Ran teasingly.

"Of course, gomen, gomen. I didn't mean to laugh… I guess they have a mind of their own." Ran smiled and giggled some more. "So… where are we going?"

Kasuma shrugged, "Haud informatio. Wherever we want to I guess."

"Kasuma! I don't speak… uh…"

"Latin," Shinichi spoke up, "She spoke in Latin. She said those two words to me when I asked her the same question."

"Well, Mr. Detective… what does.. haud… informatio…?" she looked at Kasuma who nodded. "What does haud informatio mean?"

"No idea."

"You don't know?"

"No, that what it means. 'No idea'." Shinichi said, glancing at Kasuma. "But blurting out answers in dead languages won't be helpful… especially if no one understands what you're saying."

"Scit! So it's fine." Kasuma exclaimed.

Shinichi sighed, "Did you _have_ to use the Late Latin pronunciation?"

"Ita vero," Kasuma stated.

"Can you _please_ stop your _very_ interesting conversation and maybe start today by getting some food for breakfast?" Ran asked, holding back a small smile.

"Haiii!" Kasuma smiled and pulled the two of them down to the coffee shop downstairs.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Poirot Café Shop

August 4, 7:15 AM

"Oh damn it; I should have gotten you to open that present! I completely forgot." Kasuma exclaimed, placing her cup of hot chocolate on the table in the shop. "You would have _loved_ it, Ran-san… you too Shinichi-kun."

"Kasuma! All you're doing is freaking me out more!" Ran exclaimed, looking past her cup of coffee and glancing at Ran.

"It's worrying me too. But then again, it's been worrying me even since you told me you bought it." Shinichi said, taking a sip from his own cup of coffee.

"Come on! All this anxiety is unnecessary! It's not like I got you lingerie, Ran-san!" Kasuma said, picking up her cup again.

Ran blushed, "And that point didn't help calm me down! For all I know you could have gotten me a wedding dress!"

"Now that doesn't make any sense. Shinichi-kun hasn't even proposed to you." Kasuma looked at the now reddening Shinichi.

"Subject change please," Shinichi pleaded.

"Subject _topic_ please," Kasuma retorted.

"How about where we're planning to go today?" Ran interrupted.

Kasuma looked at Shinichi, "Haido City Museum?"

"You heard about the heist?" Kasuma nodded.

"I called Kazuha when I got home. Hattori-kun was the one who delivered the message but that's irrelevant." Kasuma explained. "Will Nakamori-kebu be there?"

Shinichi nodded, "Last night he said he'd find the jewel the thieves are after and while he's over there, he'll probably start posting guards everywhere."

"I can drive us over there. My car's in my garage but it's not that far to get to." The three of them got up, paid for their food and drinks and started walking towards Kasuma's house. Shinichi looked over at Kasuma, "Aren't you under aged to have a license here?"

"In America, the minimum age limit for a license is sixteen. That's where I got my driver's license." Shinichi opened his mouth to speak but Kasuma cut him off, "Don't ask about an IDP, I got one before I arrived here. After my birthday, I'm going to apply for a Japanese license." A few minuets later, the three teens arrived at Kasuma's house. She led them around her house to the back of the building where a two-car garage was situated. "I'll be right back," Kasuma ran up to a door next to the garage and disappeared behind it only to reappear seconds later when the one of the garage doors opened. Kasuma entered the blue car inside and drove it out onto the driveway. The doors were unlocked and she rolled down a window, "Come on, get in." Ran and Shinichi complied and piled in, Ran in the passenger seat and Shinichi settling for one of the back seats.

* * *

Haido City, Japan

Haido City Museum

August 4, 7:39 AM

"Looks like Nakamori-kebu beat us to it," Kasuma murmured as the teens exited the car and walked up to the museum entrance. The said inspector was outside the entrance talking to some officers from the Kaito KID Task Force. He stopped when he saw the three teenagers walk up. "Well, well. It's you guys again."

"Don't look at us like that," Kasuma groaned, "We just wanted to look at this new target the thieves are after… By the way, were you saying something about a fake jewel?"

"Yeah… Apparently, the jewel from last night's heist was replaced with a fake sometime around ten… at least that's what we guessed." Nakamori looked at the small group.

"Ten… an hour before the heist time? Why did they make their move an hour before the given time?" Shinichi mused. "What did they do?"

"Well, a little after ten, a figure matching KID's description, what we _know_ of his description at least, knocked out the guard in charge of manning the security system. Shortly after that, the camera watching the room with the jewel switched off and the weight and infra-red sensors were shut down as well. After _that_, at around ten twenty, the camera and sensors were switched on again. We're guessing _that's_ when the switch was made."

"So when the guards were knocked out and the door was opened, that was to make us think the gem had been stolen at the designated time when it was really a fake inside the room?" Shinichi responded.

"Right. But we don't know the motive behind acting out the heist an hour earlier." Nakamori mumbled.

"Then that means those two stayed at the estate from at least ten to a little past eleven." Nakamori stared at Shinichi. "When I got to the roof, KID and Mage were already up there, ready to escape."

"Well are we gonna try and stop the thieves from succeeding or are we gonna stand around and chat?" Kasuma asked, staring at the door. Nakamori huffed and stormed into the museum with the three teens following closely behind. Nakamori ceased advancing when he entered a large room filled with bronze statues. In the center was a single pedestal with a shining object resting inside. Nakamori glared at the teens who were examining the emerald on display, "It's called the May Flower, so this is the one mentioned in the riddle."

"May Flower? Like the ship that carried pilgrims to the New World?" Kasuma looked up at the inspector.

"Correct, miss." A slightly chubby man in a brown suit said, walking up to the stand, "This emerald was rumored to be on that very ship when the pilgrims migrated over to the New World. Oh, and I'm the head of the museum Bijutsu Kokuo."

"Konnichiwa," Kasuma answered. "Oh, and if this really _was_ on the May Flower, then shouldn't it be in America? Why is it in Japan?"

"Did it find its way into Japan?" Shinichi continued.

"Exactly," Kokuo stated, "I was visiting friends in America when I came across this emerald. I bought it and took it with me back to Japan where I placed it in this museum."

"It really _does_ look like something KID or Mage would steal." Ran murmured. "But Nakamori-kebu… why have you started guarding the museum? The heist isn't until the sixth right?"

"Those two may plant something inside the museum and when they do, my men will be there to stop and catch them." Nakamori announced.

"Oi, oi. You're making it sound like those two thieves just walk through the main entrance to set up." Kasuma mumbled.

"Better safe than sorry," Nakamori responded.

Kasuma sighed quietly, "I guess so. Are you planning any high-tech security set-ups?"

"Of course! There's no way KID and Mage are gonna get to the gem with what I've planned!" Nakamori yelled.

Kasuma studied the inspector's face, "You have no idea what you're going to do against them, do you?"

"Of course I do. I wouldn't be the head of the KID Task Force if I didn't." Nakamori nodded to himself. "The vents will be sealed off so they can't crawl into the room and the room will be empty with guards at all of the entrances to this room. The glass case will, of course, have a strong lock system that they will never be able to crack open. Only the head of security and I know how to disable this!" Nakamori patted the glass case proudly.

'Oi, was it really alright to announce the security plan like this?' Shinichi thought, 'KID or Mage could be listening in on our conversation. Even if they are, it's a bit too late to stop Nakamori-kebu in his explanation.'

"I wonder if they're gonna appoint you the head of the Mage Task Force… after they decide to create one that is." Kasuma murmured.

Nakamori glared at Kasuma, "As long as KID and Mage decide to work together, I might as well be the head of the 'Mage Task Force!'"

Kasuma fought back a smirk, "Will this system of yours really prevent the jewel from being stolen?"

"Keh!" Nakamori grunted, "Kids these days have no faith in their elders. Of course it'll work!"

"Well then, you'll have to tell me how that turns out." Kasuma said, lifting her hand slightly.

"Are you not coming, Kasuma?" Ran looked at the girl.

"How I wish I could…" Kasuma sighed, "But I'm working late on the sixth and won't be able to attend. But one of my goals is to make it to at least _one_ KID or Mage heist."

Ran sighed, "I'll have no one to talk to…"

"Gomen Ran-san!" Kasuma replied, hands clasped together in front of her nose.

"Oi, am I invisible? Will you ignore me during the heist?" Shinichi asked, acting hurt.

"You'll probably be distracted as it is with the fact you're at a heist." Ran looked at Nakamori, "Will Aoko-chan be there on the sixth?"

"No, she despises KID. She doesn't like going to his heists. Every once in a while she will, but that's fairly rare." Nakamori shrugged.

"Gomen," Kasuma repeated, "I'll try to make it to the next heist, promise."

Ran smiled faintly, "It's alright if you don't. I understand if you're too busy." Her gaze slipped to where Shinichi was standing, gazing absent-mindedly at the jewel case. He glared at Ran, "What are you lookin at?"

Ran snickered, "Betsu ni."

* * *

Haido City, Japan

August 4, 8:00 AM

"What did you pick up with that device you set up with your dove?"

"Not much… mainly what the general security plan was but no information on how to crack through the system. The mechanism on the jewel case seems airtight… Unless you found something on your end?"

"So far, our gatherings have the same result… would your assistant be able to sneak their way inside the building fairly easily?"

"Aren't you in the area? Can't you see how tight the security is bound to be right now?"

"Well, yes but… a measly disguise may not get me in. The museum is closed off to the public and I won't be able to succeed as an officer. No matter what disguise I come up with, I haven't created anything that will withstand Nakamori's 'test.' He'll see through me in an instant… unless I risk using my real face which I'm_ not_ thinking of trying. He's got Tantei-kun at his heel.. I'm _not_ entering the building in my true face with _him_ around."

"That _would_ pose a problem."

"Just a _teensy_ bit." A sigh, "This may be slightly harder than we planned. I've set aside time to check up on the Head of Security-san. That might prove useful. But I'm not crossing my fingers."

"Good luck with that."

"Arigato… Someone's leaving, I've got to go. Ja ne."

* * *

Haido City, Japan

Haido City Park

August 4, 8:04 AM

Kasuma swiftly grabbed onto the edge of the monkey bars, swinging her legs up and over the bright yellow bar. She hung there gazing at the now upside-down form of her companions, Ran and Shinichi. "I quit a while ago… maybe five years or so…? I can't exactly remember."

"How good are you? I'd really like to see a one-on-one match between you and Shinichi." Ran asked, looking at Kasuma's upside-down features.

"Hmm… define good please. I've played for maybe five or six years… mainly to get lower body strength. I guess I quit because I was just doing too much stuff. And dance covers the lower body quite as well." Kasuma grabbed the bar with both of her hands and swung herself into a sitting position on the bars, her back facing the other two at the moment. She swiveled her head to gaze at the two teens planted on the light brown bark-chipped ground.

"That sounds like Shinichi's response," Ran murmured, shooting a sideways glance at the only male in the group.

"So… participating in activities for the muscular strength?" Kasuma slowly stood up, receiving a gasp from Ran and the beginning of a protest from Shinichi. Kasuma swiftly but slowly—if that was even possible—turned and gazed down at Ran and Shinichi. "There were several others that gave me muscular strength that I, unfortunately, had to quit. My parents were glad that I liked trying so many different things but it just ended up piling up… and being involved in school-related sport teams and five or so extra-curricular activities was hell on my homework load. Sure there wasn't much to do homework wise, but it significantly decreased my _time_ for homework. They ended up forcing me to choose three or four that I _really_ wanted to continue. I chose Piano, Volleyball, Dance, and…" Kasuma moved to the other side of the monkey bars and raised her arms before jumping. In the air, she tucked herself into a ball and flipped one… two… three times before unwinding and landing with a soft _THUD_ on the ground, raising her hands up above her head. "Gymnastics."

"Mou, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" Ran exclaimed crossing under the bars to the side Kasuma was on.

Kasuma turned and smiled, "Well, we can't have _that_ now can we? Besides you're too young to be gettin' any kind of heart attack and Shinichi-kun would probably get a heart attack of his own if _you_ collapsed." Shinichi glared at the girl.

"Well, how about it Kasuma? There's a ball right over there." Ran pointed at the ball resting alone on the nearby field.

"It might be someone's ball," Kasuma murmured, walking over to the said ball. She rolled the soccer ball over to herself and began juggling it. The ball hit the ground shortly after. Shinichi snickered, "Lost your touch have you?"

"Hmph, don't mock me Shinichi-kun." Kasuma moved back over to the ball and drew back her right foot, swinging it foreword and sending the ball speeding towards Shinichi. Shinichi blocked it with his hand but not after flinching after the ball's contact and shaking his hand vigorously. "Damn, that's one strong kick."

"What were you saying about 'loosing my touch'?" Kasuma grinned. Shinichi sighed and began his own session of ball-juggling. After a while, the soccer ball was headed back to Kasuma who resumed her previous task of juggling the ball—with much more pleasant results, "See, just a matter of practice… I haven't played soccer in years, can't expect me to be amazing right off the bat."

"Hai, hai," Shinichi muttered approaching Kasuma and sticking his foot out, trying to steal the ball from the teen. Kasuma retaliated by tossing the ball over her head and contacting the object with the bottom of her foot. "How about it Shinichi-kun? Mini game? First one to five wins," Kasuma sent the ball back around and resumed juggling the ball in front of her. Shinichi smirked, running farther up the field, "You're on!"

-Fifteen minuets (full of missed shots, slipping, and mocking) later-

"There's no way that was six years of soccer experience!" Shinichi retorted, dribbling the ball around as he glared at Kasuma, who was grinning maniacally.

"But it was!" Kasuma's grin widened, "How long have _you_ been playing?"

"I don't know," Shinichi frowned, "Maybe around ten to twelve years."

"Shinichi's mad!" Ran exclaimed, a smile breaking through, "Because someone with less experience beat him. And Shinichi's _never_ lost!"

"Baaro, didn't I just say it? There's _no_ way that was six years of soccer experience!" Shinichi retorted, heat rising out of anger, adding to the already red-faced teen. The ball was sent airborne as Shinichi began juggling again. "No way… no _way _was that six years."

"Or…" Kasuma mused, "Maybe Shinichi-kun's just not a good goalie. Or defender."

"I'm a perfectly good goalie… _and_ defender!" Shinichi shot back.

"But me, with my _six_ years of experience, was able to get five shots past you. That must say _something_." Kasuma gasped, "Maybe _you're_ loosing your touch!"

"Baaro! I am not!" Shinichi pouted. He lowered his voice and mumbled, "What _else_ did you learn? No _way_ soccer got you your agility."

"Maybe it's just natural… my agility that is." Kasuma's grin returned. "Just be happy the score was close and that it wasn't five to zero." Kasuma walked back over to the monkey bars and swung up and onto the top of the structure. She made herself comfortable and peered down at Ran and Shinichi with a small smile. "Ne, Ran-san… any sports _you_ excel at?"

Ran looked up past the swinging legs of the girl sitting on the monkey bars and shrugged, "I'm not sure… maybe tennis?" Kasuma sighed, "Sadly there's no tennis court here… oh well."

"And you seem to have forgotten about equipment… which we don't have." Ran pointed out.

Kasuma nodded, "True, true. Ne, Shinichi-kun, can you toss me the soccer ball?"

"Sure," Shinichi kicked it up to Kasuma, "But why do you need it?"

"I don't _need_ it," Kasuma caught the ball and immediately tossed it lightly. "I just need something to do up here… other than flips and tricks." The black and white ball contacted with the girl's forearms and Kasuma continued in this manner, bumping the ball to herself.

Shinichi's eyebrow rose, "That's not a volleyball… Doesn't it hurt?"

Kasuma shrugged, switching from a series of bumps to a string of sets, "It's not _too _bothersome."

"Won't you fall Kasuma," Ran queered.

Kasuma let out a series of 'tsk's, "More faith please. I played long enough that I can control the ball just fine. Of course I wouldn't try any jump serves from up here but I can easily succeed at passing to myself." Kasuma paused, "A week's almost over, isn't it?" She looked down at Shinichi. "Sadly, Shinichi-kun will have to go off wherever he has to. But on the bright side, Conan-kun will be back from Manila."

"And you just _had_ to remind me," Ran growled, her eyes beginning to glare daggers at the girl seated on top of the play structure.

Kasuma tossed the ball back down to Shinichi and jumped, letting her legs absorb the impact as she crouched briefly then stood back up again. "Well, Shinichi-kun's departure has messed up _my_ plans as well so don't look at me like that. I thought you'd be grateful for Shinichi-kun leaving this time. I mean, if he didn't, you two'd be constantly goin' out 'til it made you sick. Thank Shinichi-kun for god sake!"

Ran sighed, blushing while mumbling a quiet, "Thank you Shinichi for saving me from a living hell involving Kasuma and her crazy date plans."

Catching ear of the mumble, Kasuma pouted, "Don't call them crazy! I like to think of them as 'creative,' not 'crazy.' Besides, with all that time away from each other, as my previous guardian would say, 'You two have lots of catching up to do, young lady. Now get to it!'" Kasuma's newly attained smile widened. "… Wait a minuet? Did you just say 'hell'…? You did! You actually did!"

"By 'previous guardian,' you mean your parents right? Why didn't you just say that?" Shinichi asked, resisting the urge to both blush lightly and bury his face in his hands.

Kasuma's grin morphed into a look of extreme confusion, "No, I _really_ mean previous guardian. I haven't seen my parents in five years." She paused, "Don't give me that look Ran-san!" Kasuma very briefly fell into silence. "Didn't I mention that…? I guess not."

"Were they criminals?" Shinichi murmured to himself.

"Again with the criminal thesis! Taku, you can't mark my family as criminals because I learned how to forge and pick locks from them! I learned tons of stuff from them… some important some… possibly _un-_important. And so far, they've proved to be _very_ useful."

"Ale? Ran-oneesan?" a voice asked.

The criminal conversation was cut short as Ran looked for the source of the voice. "Ayumi-chan? Genta-kun… and Mitsuhiko-kun? What are you three doing here?"

"Hakase agreed to drive us here to play!" Ayumi announced just as said professor and another child approached. "By the way… what are you doing here?"

"We decided to hang around here after checking out the new heist target of KID and Mage." Kasuma answered, jumping up onto the monkey bars again and shifting around on her perch on the bars in order to hang herself upside down, her legs supporting her weight as she hung there.

"And you took that quite literally." Murmured Haibara, glancing up at the hanging girl.

"So what," Kasuma pouted, "It's fun."

"Kasuma-oneesan!" Ayumi glanced at Shinichi, "And Shinichi-oniisan too?"

"Uh… yeah," Shinichi mumbled, scratching the back of his head.

"Look!" Genta exclaimed, "Someone left their soccer ball here! Let's play!" He ran over to the ball and picked it up off the ground and ran back to the group.

"But we're missing people. Conan's not here so we don't have even teams." Mitsuhiko said.

"Shinichi can play with you guys," Ran offered dragging Shinichi over to the three kids.

"Sorry, but I'll pass." Shinichi said, shrugging his arm out of Ran's grasp.

"So will I," Haibara mumbled.

"Oh…" Kasuma smirked, "I know what's going on here." She glanced at Shinichi, "You just don't want to play after getting beaten by me. Oh well, I'll play with you guys."

"Is that a challenge," Shinichi growled.

Kasuma shrugged, "If you want it to be. What, do you change your mind?" Kasuma ignored the glare directed at her, "If you're going to play now, Ran-san can join a team to make it even."

"But, I don't like soccer!"

"Onegai, Ran-san?" Kasuma stuck out her bottom lip and looked up at Ran, "Por favor, si vis, palihog, parakalo,' s'il vous plait…"

"Stop that!" Ran yelled, "Fine! I'll play just.. stop using so many different languages!"

"Yes!" Kasuma exclaimed, "Now to split up into two teams…"

* * *

Haido City, Japan

Haido City Museum

August 6, 6:48 PM

"And once again, we arrive at the museum." Shinichi mumbled ascending the stairs with Ran and Mouri. The head of the museum, Bijutsu Kokuo, was to one to greet the three at the entrance and he led them silently to the holding place of the gem. Nakamori Ginzo was pacing outside the room hollering orders through his radio. He paused only to acknowledge the arrival of Shinichi and the Mouris. "I don't care if the gem doesn't seem safe; no one is allowed to enter the room until _after_ the heist time has passed! No one enters!"

"Um, actually Kebu-san," Nakamori paused, "I would like to quickly scan the room for any abnormalities." Kokuo spoke up.

"I'm sorry Bijutsu-san but that's too much of a risk, KID and Mage may already be inside the building and we can't risk the chance of letting either of those two into the room."

"I assure you, I wouldn't take long. All I need to do is walk around the perimeter and make sure nothing was added or taken from the room. I'd make sure to enter swiftly and your men can guard the door until I'm done."

"Even though I know you're not KID or Mage, I still don't want to risk that." Nakamori said, trying to reason with the museum head.

"How do you know he's not KID or Mage?" Shinichi asked.

"Simple. Just look at his cheek. I've already pinched him and his cheek is still red. There's no way KID or Mage have created something to conquer these." Nakamori held up his thumb and pointer finger to prove his point. "Still, Bijutsu-san, I don't want those doors opened even the slightest centimeter."

Mouri stepped foreword, "I could follow Bijutsu-san in and make sure nothing strange happens."

Nakamori paused, thinking over the suggestion. "Okay, fine. But first…" Nakamori walked up to Mouri and grabbed his cheek, pulling forcefully down on the skin before letting go and allowing the abused skin to snap back into place. "Alright men, you heard me! Open… that door," Nakamori pointed to the closest door to himself, "Let Bijutsu-san and Mouri-san enter. Close the door immediately after they enter and don't leave your posts until they've departed the room."

The guards complied and Kokuo and Mouri entered. Two minuets passed and the two exited the room closing and locking the door as they did. "There was nothing unusual inside, Nakamori-kebu." Mouri reported. Kokuo affirmed the information and gave the key to Nakamori who pocketed the item in a hidden pocket in his jacket.

"Good." Nakamori nodded, "Now no one enters the room until the designated time has well passed, you hear me?"

"When's sunset?" Shinichi asked, looking down at his watch.

"In…" Nakamori looked down at his own watch, "Three minuets. Now if you'll excuse me, I must be over in the next hallway before three minuets are up."

"Why, Nakamori-kebu?" Ran asked, watching as the inspector walked past her and down the hall.

"If you remember… I have the only key into the room so I'm keeping my distance until three minuets are up. Those two are big on punctuality; they won't be late so the key won't be around when they show." Nakamori turned and started down the hallway but not before the sound of something crashing was heard originating from inside the sealed room. Nakamori cursed before bolting back to the door and pressing an ear to the wooden rectangle. There was another crash and Nakamori's hand immediately shot up to the key's hiding spot. He fumbled with the process of inserting the key into the keyhole but finally got it in after the third try. With the door now open, Nakamori, Mouri, and Shinichi ran inside only to be blocked off by a black, metal fence circling the perimeter of the room. "Damn it, where is Bijutsu-san? Get Bijutsu-san!" Nakamori hollered.

"Why do we need Bijutsu-san?" Mouri questioned.

Nakamori growled, "He has the key to open this fence."

"Hm, good idea," Shinichi muttered. "You separated the keys so that if one of them got even one of the keys, they'd have to find the second one to enter the room."

Kokuo ran in and opened the fence. The four of them ran into the room only to find themselves surrounded by bright pink smoke. They immediately covered their noses and mouths in case the smoke was laced with sleeping gas and slowly made their way to the middle of the room. The smoke cleared out soon after and the four people in the room found themselves face to face with an empty jewel case. "Baka na!" Nakamori growled.

"Calm down Inspector." Shinichi examined the case, "The case has been surrounded by a mirror. Is there a way to open it?"

Nakamori picked up his radio, "Oi, Sonoda-san, disable the security now!"

There was a crackle as Sonoda picked up the radio, "I'm on it Kebu!" The radio was silent for a moment before Sonoda spoke up again, "It's down Kebu!"

Nakamori nodded to himself and grasped the glass case, lifting slowly. When the case was almost off, the lights blacked out. There was a loud _BANG_ as, most likely Nakamori, tripped and fell, followed by several other bodies that had ran into the room. Shinichi pulled out a flashlight and shone it in the direction of the jewel stand. The glass case was lying on the floor by Nakamori's leg and the stand itself was empty. "Damn it!" Nakamori cursed, groping for his radio. "What's happening outside! Did anyone leave?"

An officer's voice flittered in through the radio, "We can't tell sir, it's too dark out here."

Another officer spoke, "Kebu, I just found Masked Magician… well, his disguise. He disguised himself as the head of security! What should I do?"

"What do you think? Chase him!" Nakamori paused, "How do you know it's Mage?"

"His caricature is on a card on top of the disguise. And I can't tell where he's gone."

"Kusou!" Shinichi ran towards the door, flashlight beam in front of him. He turned to an officer, "Where's the stairs to the roof?" The officer pointed to a door down the hall and Shinichi ran towards it. 'If Mage was the security head then KID must have been Bijutsu-san. I didn't see him after the blackout so he must have fled after snatching the gem.' Shinichi froze and collapsed, clutching his chest tightly. 'No, am I changing back into Conan?' Shinichi dragged himself to his feet, 'I have to make it to the roof.' Shinichi staggered to the door and burst it open, climbing the stairs as fast as he could.

Shinichi broke out onto the roof of the museum and stopped, clutching his chest and falling to his knees. Two caped figures froze, pausing to look at the fallen detective. 'No. I can't change back into Conan now. I need to catch _them_.' Shinichi looked up at where the two thieves were situated. 'I can't let this stop me from keeping that emerald safe.'

In a mere split second, Shinichi saw a look of extreme… was it concern?... in Masked Mage's eyes. "We can't leave him here, KID." Masked Mage said, handing KID the emerald. Even though the comment was at a normal tone, Shinichi didn't hear it. A violent shudder overcame his whole body and he sealed his mouth shut to avoid crying out. Masked Mage advanced slowly, wary of the watch he knew was in Shinichi's pocket. But… when Shinichi convulsed again, the Mage ran the rest of the way in order to get to Shinichi's side. A pair of hands reached down and picked up the high-school detective, throwing his left arm over his shoulder. There was a small roof-top storage room in which Masked Mage led Shinichi to.

Shinichi looked up as the storage door burst open. The dimly lit figure slowly set Shinichi down on the ground and dug through a bag that seemed to appear out of thin air. Masked Magician looked at the detective, "I've just placed a pair of clothes on your right side, Kudo-kun. They're the right size; at least they should be, for you 'alter ego'." The smirk on the Mage's face was unseen but evident, "We can't have you shrinking on us out there. Plus, it'll be warmer in here than out there." The Mage looked at the door, then back at Shinichi. Masked Mage got up. "Tell you're scientist friend to find the antidote quickly. It's much more interesting with Kudo Shinichi around. Well, it's fun with Edogawa Conan too but…" the Mage sighed, "I guess it can't be helped."

Masked Mage walked to the door. "Mage?" Shinichi whispered.

"Yes?"

Shinichi smiled, "Thank you."

Masked Magician opened the door and walked out into the open, placing a wooden wedge between the door and doorframe and diving off the building. The wings appeared and Masked Magician flew away. "You're welcome, Tantei-kun."

* * *

Haido City, Japan

Haido City Museum

August 6, 7:03 PM

Ran's cell phone rang and she picked it up quickly, "Moshi, moshi?"

"Ran?"

"Shinichi? Why are you calling?" Ran asked, looking around the roof where she was currently standing on.

"Well, right after KID and Mage got away; I got a phone call about a new case that came up. I had to leave immediately so I wasn't able to look for a new heist note. Are you on the roof?" Conan asked via bowtie.

"Yeah. I am," Ran answered.

"Good. Then can you look around the roof for a new heist note. It might be painted the same color as its surroundings but it should be up there."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll look for it." Ran muttered.

"Thanks a lot Ran." Shinichi hung up.

Ran huffed and pocketed her phone. "That tantei otaku! And where am I supposed to look first?" She stormed across the perimeter of the roof, searching the ground for the note. She found it soon after, peeling it off the side of the storage room wall. Ran read it once then headed for the stairs where Nakamori and the other members of the Task Force were untangling themselves from the thieves' trap consisting of super glue and fishing nets.

...

Beneath the full moon, when the chimes ring the smallest prime, the orange moon will be discovered once again by man. Start with nine, separate in(to), remove one half.  
-KID and Mage

* * *

**Final Notes: Sorry if the ending of this chapter seems a little rushed… (smiles sheepishly) I was looking at my newly attained phone (reason as to why it's new is below) and I realized… IN THIS CHAPTER, TODAY IS THE DATE OF THE HEIST! So I was pressured by myself and DCMonkey4EVR to finish this chapter and post it today.**

**In case anyone was curious, the Latin word 'scit' mean 'he knows,' which is why Kasuma said that word. So her response in English would be "He knows! So it's fine." When Shinichi mentioned the Late Latin pronunciation of 'scit,' he was talking about how the diphthong (at least the 'sc' combo **_**should**_** be a diphthong) 'sc' changed from a hard sound like in ****sk****ate to a softer sound like in ****sh****uffle. So the Late Latin pronunciation of 'scit' sounds like a 'bad' word that has a similar spelling. To the ears of people who haven't heard Late Latin, it would seem like Kasuma said, "Shit! So it's fine." : ) Oh and nice memory recall Shinichi…**

**If there is anyone reading my story that can come up with good murders/murder tricks please send me ideas. This story may be about thieves but I would like to add a few murders here and there. I will take anything!**

**Man I am pissed. And it all started with a theft on a Sunday. No, not by KID or Mage, a different kind. Someone had the nerve to break into my parent's car and snatch my purse during Church. CHURCH! That's low. So a lot of my info and planning on this story is gone! And I had everything planned out… everything up to the twenty-second chapter! Now it's gone!**

… **On the bright side, did ya like this chapter?**


	7. Citrine Yellow (5)

**A/N: Hello ya'll. Sorry about the wacky schedule... but I'm here aren't I? (K, I'll just shut up now. I talk too much)**

**Warnings: Eventual romance (…possibly?) involving the pairings Shinichi and Ran, Kaito and Aoko, Heiji and Kazuha, and one more which will stay a secret until the time comes. (And no DCMonkey4EVR… you can NOT announce to the world what the fourth pairing is! ...FYI readers, DC has been and will be, helping me with story concepts, scene outlines, and much more so you will be seeing her name often :D )**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan!**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): I feel inclined to say that all heists up to the 21****st**** chapter are already (roughly) planned out. But the problem: The material either before or after the heist is the most time consuming factor in this story. And it's hard to prepare that material because the material is very flexible and depends heavily on how my mind is processing the plotline (outside of heists). Don't you think it strange if in a later chapter there was some dialogue or reference to a past event that didn't actually happen? I would.**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Citrine Yellow

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

August 8, 1:05 PM

"Conan-kun! How was Manila?" Ran asked, pulling the boy into a big hug.

"It was so much fun! Shinichi-niisan's kaa-san took me to SM Mall of Asia and got me a new game! It's so much fun!" Conan grinned and showed Ran and Kasuma behind her the game he was holding.

"Oh? That's good." Ran smiled, "I guess Kudo-san didn't traumatize you."

'Of course not. They're still in America.' Conan shook his head and found his way back to the couch in the living room, continuing the game in his hands. Ran gladly accepted the cup of tea Agasa offered her and sat down on the couch as well. "Did you get any good pictures Conan-kun?"

"No," Conan pouted, looking up from his game. "Their camera ran out of batteries and they forgot to bring extras."

Ran laughed quietly, "Of course they did. Oh well, that's too bad."

"Hm, with their status of being Shinichi-kun's parents, they don't seem like the type of people who would forget something… even if it was something small like batteries." Kasuma mused quietly, "Oh well. It's too late to be worrying about that… Ne, Conan-kun, would you like to accompany us, and by 'us,' I mean Ran-san, Sonoko, and myself, to the airport?"

Conan raised an eyebrow, "Why the airport? Is one of your friends from America or Europe visiting Japan, Kasuma-neechan?"

Kasuma laughed, "While it's true that a few of my friends are _planning_ to visit, they haven't set a date. Actually, it's mainly for Sonoko. Her boyfriend, Makoto-kun had a tournament overseas and he's returning today…" Kasuma snickered, "She's trying her best not to show her excitement but… it's _so_ obvious it's cute! She's trying to shrug it off as her wanting to introduce me to Makoto-kun but I'm sure that's not her true objective. Would you like to come?"

Conan nodded, "Yay! I get to meet Makoto-niisan again!"

Ran smiled and brought her empty cup of tea into the kitchen while Kasuma glanced at her watch. "Well… Sonoko should be here soon. Where is sh—?" Just then, the door flew open and Sonoko walked in, looked around, and met Ran as she walked out of the kitchen. "Ah, there she is." Kasuma mumbled.

"Come on, come on!" Sonoko exclaimed, "We've got to go!" She grabbed Ran's elbow and towed the poor girl out of the house. Kasuma chuckled to herself before following the two girls and Conan, who had rushed after Sonoko and Ran.

"Ne, ne Ran. Wouldn't it be interesting to see you and Makoto-kun face off in a karate match?" Sonoko was saying, her arm still latched around Ran's own arm.

"I-I don't know," Ran said.

"If he's as good as you said Sonoko, it might just be a stalemate." Kasuma spoke up, glancing around Ran to peer at Sonoko.

"What about you?" Sonoko countered.

Kasuma pulled back, slightly flustered, "W-what? He would beat my ass! I haven't used karate in years."

"Kasuma-neechan, you took karate?" Conan asked, looking behind him at the older girl.

"Well, yeah but that was years ago. I was maybe ten or so when I quit. Sonoko, I don't think that would be a fair match."

"But you have the experience!"

Kasuma shook her head, "Which I've probably completely lost. It's been… nine years, maybe. Ran-san could probably beat me in ten seconds flat."

Sonoko dropped the subject and began humming happily to herself. Several minuets later, the group made it to the train station. After hopping onto the next train bound for the airport Sonoko spoke up again. "Ran has Shinichi, I have Makoto so… who do _you_ have Kasuma? Hmm?"

Ran froze and blushed as Kasuma raised an eyebrow, "What brought this on Sonoko?"

"Oh, just answer the question!" Sonoko exclaimed, "There _is_ a special someone isn't there?"

"Well," Kasuma paused, trying to sort through her thoughts, "There's one."

"Really? Who?" Sonoko asked excitedly.

"I'm not spilling and I am not going to give you the opportunity to try and match-make us. You'll have to deal with silence on my part. Either that or you try and figure out who I'm talking about. That might be hard as he lives in a different country and you've probably only met him once or twice." Kasuma smirked, "Good luck Koko-sei Tantei Suzuki Sonoko."

"A foreigner? I don't know any foreigners! That's not fair Kasuma, give me a better clue!" Sonoko whined.

'I didn't say anything about a foreigner.' Was the thought that crossed Kasuma's mind before she answered. "Well, I guess you're out of luck." The smirk returned, "When my lips are sealed, they're sealed." Kasuma looked at Conan when he tugged gently at the hem of her shirt. "Nani?"

"Do you know how long we're supposed to stay on the train?"

Kasuma smiled and nodded, "The stop for the airport will come in about ten minuets… hopefully. Ten minuets more or less."

"Are you sure, Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked.

"Yup. I remember because there's a really big bookstore by the airport stop. I stopped by that store when I returned so I remember it well. And if I'm wrong then… well, let's just hope that _someone_ knows where we are."

"Great. I'm being dragged along to the airport by three direction-impaired teenagers." Conan mumbled.

"Now, now," Kasuma lightly swatted Conan's head. "No need to go _that_ far. If we're so direction-impaired, then why do I see the airport right over there?" Kasuma pointed out the window at the tall tower of the local airport looming in the distance. "Clearly, we're headed in the right direction so you have no right to accuse the three of us of being direction-impaired. Oh… and if I remember correctly, you weren't 'dragged along,' you came on your own free will."

"Whatever." Conan said tersely.

A smirk appeared and Kasuma decided against responding to Conan's jibe, instead pulling out a small, red paperback book from her purse and opening it to the bookmarked page. Conan glimpsed at the text, "English?"

"No, actually it's Arabic…" Kasuma switched her gaze from the book to the eight-year old. Conan snorted and ignored the sarcasm lacing Kasuma's voice to state, in his I'm-An-Innocent-Little-Boy-Who's-Absolutely-Adorable voice, "Cool! Can you teach me? I'd love to learn Arabic!"

"Sorry, Conan-kun, I'm only semi-fluent in Arabic… I wouldn't be a good choice. I can show you your name in hieroglyphics." Kasuma answered, feigned excitement laced into her voice.

"Really? What is it? Show me, show me!" Conan exclaimed, his act still firmly in place.

"Alright… let's see if I remember this correctly. 'Conan' should consist of the basket or hillside, then the quail chick followed by water, a vulture, and water. 'Edogawa' will be… vulture, hand, quail chick, pot stand, forearm, quail chick, and forearm. There we are." Kasuma held up the paper she had found and handed it to Conan who took it eagerly. Like the little kid he was supposed to be, Conan happily ran his eyes over the pictures then leaned over and said with equivalent eagerness, "Look Ran-neechan! It's my name in hi-ro-gre-fikusu!"

Ran smiled and gently corrected the boy, "It's hieroglyphics. And that's very cool Conan-kun." She looked at Kasuma, "I assume Kasuma learned glyphs at one of her previous schools?"

Kasuma smiled, "Sixth grade… Our teacher gave us a _huge_ Egypt project to work on. She also had us write our names in glyphs… of course I didn't know it at the time but she was teaching it all wrong. She told us to spell out our names and find the corresponding pictures for each letter when we were really supposed to pick out the characters by how our name sounded, not by the spelling. Well, for some people, it wouldn't have changed the appearance but oh well."

"Ne, ne, Kasuma-neechan. I think you wrote this on the back of the KID and Mage heist note." Conan remarked, flipping the page over and showing her the thieves' riddle.

"I did, didn't I?" Kasuma shrugged, "Oh well, when I snatched the note off of Mouri-san's desk, I made two copies. I was meaning to give the second copy to Shinichi-kun but… I couldn't find him anywhere."

"Yeah. That tantei otaku got called off on a case again and left the night the last heist was pulled off on. I swear that guy will go to the ends of the earth for a mystery." Ran scoffed.

"Ran-san… You _do_ know the earth doesn't end, right?" Ran rolled her eyes and remarked with a quiet, "Of course I do. Just like how you and Sonoko would go to the ends of the earth to get me set up with either Shinichi or some complete stranger."

"And when have either of us tried to set you up with a complete stranger? Oh yeah… that reminds me. You still haven't finished opening that dr—I mean dang present Shinichi-kun and I got you."

Sonoko perked up at hearing Kasuma's statement. "Aww! How romantic, Shinichi got you a present? What is it, what is it?"

'She slipped up back there,' Conan thought grimly, looking up at Kasuma. 'She was going to say something else.'

Kasuma gave up on trying to read the book she brought and returned it to her purse before turning to Sonoko. "She's too scared to finish opening it so she has no idea what's in it. And frankly, neither does Shinichi-kun." Kasuma grinned, "I can't wait until she does." She squealed.

"Wait. So let me get this straight." Sonoko started, "Ran's too chicken to find out what's inside and it's supposed to be from you and Shinichi but he has no idea what's in it?" Kasuma nodded. Sonoko beaconed Kasuma over to her other side, "Will you tell _me_ what's in it? Onegai?"

Kasuma sighed but nodded, bustling over to Sonoko to whisper in her ear. Sonoko squealed at whatever Kasuma told her and whispered something back to her. Kasuma then pulled out her phone and showed Sonoko an image that was saved in her photos to which the blonde girl responded by squealing and exclaiming in semi-hushed tones, "That's so cute!" Ran and Conan watched warily and Ran began fiddling with the straps of her own purse. She then turned to Conan and whispered, "Ne Conan-kun. I don't think we should _ever_ leave those two alone in a mall. Who _knows_ what kind of trouble they could get into?" Conan laughed weakly and nodded his agreement.

"Raaan! I heard that!" Sonoko exclaimed, turning to glare at her friend. Ran returned the comment with a small smile and a "Whatever are you talking about? I didn't say anything." Sonoko brushed off her response and returned to her conversation with Kasuma.

Conan buried his head in his hands and sighed. 'Those two are gonna be a _big_ problem.' He turned his head and strained to pick up snippets of the two girls' conversation. "… stubborn!" "I know right?" "We could…into a business." "Yup, a full blown corporation!" "I'm already… another pair." "… they stubborn too?" "Oh yeah… almost as… as _them_." "Can I help?" "Much more effective than dating sites." "Oh yeah… them too." "N'ver mind… make that _two_ other pairs." "We'll need to get started." "Shhh! You're… loud." "Oops. Anyway…"

"Ne, ne!" Conan interrupted, "Isn't that our stop?"

The two gossiping girls looked up and outside the windows. "Oh yeah… Now that I think about it, this _does_ look like our stop." Sonoko murmured, "Dang, and we were on a roll!"

"Oh, it's fine Sonoko. We can continue this on the ride back." Kasuma said, standing up and heading for the doors. The remaining members of the small group did the same and they were finally out of the train and headed for the airport entrance.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo Airport

August 8, 1:50 PM

The notice announcing the arrival of flight 4461 San Francisco to Tokyo flashed across the screen several feet away from where the girls and Conan were waiting. Sonoko's excitement only grew when the notice was pointed out by Ran and Conan could hear Sonoko quietly chanting "He's here, he's here!" from where he was examining a store's stand nearby. Kasuma joined Conan and crouched so she was at eye-level with him. "So… Sonoko looks excited."

"Way to point out the obvious." Conan grumbled, forgetting his act for a second before reeling and paling slightly. Kasuma didn't seem to notice and continued, "I had no idea Sonoko was _this_ attracted to him. Hm… a karate expert? I wonder how he did?"

"Probably won. Makoto-niisan likes to go to _all_ the tournaments he can to find good opponents." Conan answered, throwing his arms around into one big circle. "He's really good! He saved Sonoko-neechan when some bag guy tried to attack her! He even had a knife and everything… the bad guy, I mean. He was a mean, mean person. He only targeted brown-haired females because he hated brunettes in general."

"Hmm… sounds interesting." Kasuma paused, "I-I mean horrible! Sounds horrible." She cleared her throat. "That's what makes karate useful… you can defend yourself and others. Well, we probably should join Ran-san and Sonoko… they've kind of drifted towards the gate."

Conan nodded and left the store, running up to Ran and Sonoko, the latter of the pair frantically searching for the dark-skinned karate expert in the crowd. Her search was proved fruitful when she finally spotted the martial artist as she grabbed Kasuma's arm and dragged her over.

"Mou Sonoko! Stop dragged me around!" Kasuma exclaimed, attempting to slip her arm out of the girl's grasp.

"Alright." Sonoko jerked to a stop, "Makoto-san, I'd like you to meet Kazuki Kasuma. Kasuma, this is Kyougoku Makoto."

Kasuma gave a small smile, "Yoroshi… Did you say Kyougoku, Sonoko?"

"Y-yeah," Sonoko stuttered. By this point, Ran and Conan had caught up to the two teenage girls and were exchanging looks of confusion.

Kasuma, after freeing her trapped arm, turned her full attention to the karate expert. "Are you the boy who always attended all of the karate tournaments in Ekoda and Haido?"

Makoto blinked and replied with a short, "Uh huh." He paused before forming a sentence of his own, "Ara, I thought you looked familiar… but, although you _look_ familiar, I don't recognize your family name."

"Oh, that's because I changed my name. Does the name Takashi Kasuma ring a bell?"

"Mou, will someone please explain what's going on?" Ran interrupted.

"Uh, Takashi-san… iie Kazuki-san and I competed against each other a lot when we were younger." Makoto explained. "Although, you quit around eight years ago."

Kasuma shrugged, "Too many extra curricular activities. Anyway, we probably don't need to stick around here much longer… You probably have to get the rest of your bags anyway, Kyougoku-kun." Kasuma's statement led the group to their next destination, the Baggage Claim.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan

Streets of Tokyo

August 8, 2:38 PM

"There better be some pleasant results when I meet Sonoko later." Kasuma was saying as she led Ran and Conan into a store. She turned around, "I may not have planned anything for them but I better hear something good."

Ran sweat-dropped, "You do this on a regular basis, don't you?"

Kasuma gave a curt nod and made a bee-line to a certain section of the store, Ran and Conan following curiously. "If there's a chance to set up the perfect pair, I'll go through with it. My friends have gotten use to it… for the most part. They still marvel at some of the… stranger couples I've worked with but they're use to it. You should follow their example," she tilted her head back to look at Ran, "'Cause you're not gonna get me to stop… not in the slightest."

Kasuma finally stopped and stooped down to the bottom half of the shelves in front of her, sorting through the merchandise on display. There was a tug on the hood of Conan's jacket as Kasuma moved him to the other side of her. 'I need to stop wearing hooded jackets' Conan thought as he yelped and caught his balance before Kasuma pointed to the shelves without diverting her attention, "You're favorite right?"

"Wha-?" Conan turned to the object at the receiving end of Kasuma's pointed finger then sent a glare her way. Kasuma didn't notice (or pretended not to) and continued shuffling through the books on the shelves, glancing at the titles before digging deeper into the stack. Conan looked through the (lacking) collection of Sherlock Holmes inventory in front of him before losing interest and, instead, reading the titles of the discarded books Kasuma had set to the side. "Poirot… Ne, ne Ran-neechan! That's the name of the café below us isn't it!"

Ran, her attention dragged down to the not-child and muttered a distracted "Y-yeah," before once again losing focus. Conan looked at Kasuma, "Ne… are you an Agatha Christie fan?"

"Huh? Oh… out of the mysteries I've read yes, I'd favor Poirot over Holmes any day." Kasuma smirked, "Use to have fights over which one of them was better." A quiet laugh, "Kinda silly."

"Fights?" Conan asked incredulously.

"Oh, I don't mean fist fights just… heated arguments. Hakuba wouldn't waver, that Holmes freak." Kasuma looked up at Ran, "Which reminds me of another stubborn male, ne Ran-san?"

"Hm, what'd you ask me?"

"Mou! You're spacin' on me. I was talking about a Holmes freak you know!"

"Kasuma-neechan, how do you know Hakuba-niisan?" Conan asked, tugging her sleeve.

Kasuma shrugged, pulling out some more books, "I helped him and the police force in London in catching Mage… Not that we actually succeeded. Ran-san, what's got you so distracted?" Kasuma completed her task of choosing four mysteries and stood, following Ran's gaze. "That's not Shinichi-kun if that's what you're thinking, Ran-san." Conan snapped out of his stupor and looked at who the girls were talking about.

Ran shook her head quickly and ran up to the Shinichi look-alike's companion. "Aoko-chan!"

"Ara, Ran-chan? What are you doing here?" the girl, Aoko, asked leaving her companion in order to meet the other girl.

"We were just at the airport picking up a friend and were then dragged into this store. Who's your friend?" Ran replied, glancing at the teenage girl juggling, literally, the books in her hand absentmindedly. "Oh, and this…" she jabbed a finger at Kasuma, "juggling girl is Kazuki Kasuma." Kasuma stopped when she realized what she was doing and smiled at Aoko.

Conan suddenly saw a look of neutrality and indifference slam down on Kasuma's face when Aoko's companion approached, "Uh, this is my friend Kuroba Kaito."

"Yo," Kaito waved, "And who's the kid?"

"Edogawa Conan! I'm a detective!" Conan exclaimed happily.

"Eh? Is that so?" Kaito mused, his mouth quirked into a grin.

"Oh and I'm Nakamori Aoko," Aoko said, addressing Kasuma more than anyone else.

Kasuma looked up from the books in her hand, "Would you, by any chance, be related to Nakamori-kebu?"

Aoko blinked. "Uh, yeah. He's my father."

"Hmm, I thought you'd be related to him," Kasuma murmured, distracted.

"How do you know Nakamori-kebu?" Kaito paused, "Masaka… Have you been to a KID heist?" Kaito's excitement only seemed to grow as he mentioned the thief.

"Once. And that was a while ago." Kasuma dug through her bag as she continued, "I didn't even _see_ Nakamori-kebu then. Although I _have_ stopped by the Higure Estate and Haido City Museum, the location of the last two heists by KID and Mage, and I ran into him there. It's not hard to remember a man as… verbal as he is."

"That's Otou-san." Aoko frowned, "That stupid thief _always_ brings out my dad's… worse side, I guess I should call it. That stupid, annoying, idiot thief!" Aoko began fuming, the beginning of a tirade surfacing.

"_Aokooo_, KID's not an idiot!" Kaito put in, very nearly forgetting about the other two girls and boy. "He's an awesome magician! Have you_ seen_ his tricks? They're so cool!" Kaito began listing off the various tricks his idol performed. "I wish I could do those." The teenage magician sighed.

"Maybe KID should tutor you, Kuroba-kun." Kasuma offered, smirking.

Kaito brightened, "Maybe he should! That'd be awesome!"

"No it wouldn't!" Aoko burst. "Why would _anyone_ want to get tutoring lessons from that baka?"

"Ano…" Ran began timidly, "Maybe we should go somewhere else… everyone's staring."

Sure enough, several customers stopped what they were doing in order to watch the quarrelling pair. Kasuma, who was standing by their side, was giving Kaito and Aoko a sidelong glace while trying, unsuccessfully, to hide the amused smirk on her face. One blink later and Conan noticed a new addition to the quarrel. Aoko, a broom in hand, began chasing the teenage boy around the store, still ranting about that "annoying, idiotic _dorobo_!"

Kaito danced around the store, skillfully avoiding other customers and flipping over low sitting bookshelves. Both Ran and Kasuma rubbed their foreheads, looking down at the ground and doing their best to stay out of the way of the pair circling them. After this lasting a couple of minutes, Kasuma huffed and moved to the edge of the safety perimeter, settling herself into a standard karate stance. 'Uh oh,' was the only thing Conan managed to think before, just as Kaito was passing, Kasuma swung her leg up in a well executed kick. Ran winced and closed her eyes; waiting for the impact she knew was coming. All that _did_ come was the soft clatter of something hitting the tiled floor. Ran's eyes opened, just in time to catch sight of the end of the broom Aoko was wielding hit the floor. Both Aoko and Kaito had frozen, expecting the worse. Kasuma brought her leg down and took a deep breath before displaying a large smile that didn't seem to fit the situation. "All right, must we spend the day watching you two chase each other around or can we maybe convene in another shop for example?"

"Uh… sure." Kaito and Aoko murmured quietly, Kaito keeping his distance in case Aoko decided she didn't want to follow Kasuma's suggestion.

"K-Kasuma? I thought you said you didn't continue karate." Ran asked, awestruck.

"I didn't." was the reply.

"T-then, w-what was that?"

Kasuma quirked an eyebrow, "Did you think I meant that I stopped altogether?" Ran nodded, "Chigau, I just stopped taking lessons. I still practiced what I had learned. Not recently but you know… muscle memory. It'll do that." Kasuma shrugged, "Now let's go. I'm getting hungry."

Aoko dropped the broken 'weapon' and, taking one short glare at Kaito, ran up to Ran. Kaito crossed his arms and pouted childishly but trailed behind the two girls and Conan, Kasuma joining him in the back. Two separate conversations began, Conan noted, the two girls in front of him and the other two teens, Kasuma and Kaito, behind him. "I take it this is normal?" Ran asked just then.

Aoko shrugged and nodded, dropping down to a whisper, "Though I'm surprised he hasn't flipped my skirt yet."

"F-f-flipped?" Ran gasped.

"Shhh!" Aoko admonished, "Don't remind him!"

Ran clasped a hand over her mouth and squeaked, nodding her head rapidly. Conan, blushing slightly at what he'd overheard, focused in on the other conversation. "You can't ice skate?"

"No, now don't rub it in my face!" Kaito moaned.

"Arg! There goes one idea." Kasuma mumbled, "Can you snowboard?"

"Yeah. Although I'm better at skiing." Kaito answered. "How 'bout you? Anything _you_ can't do?"

Kasuma paused, thinking. "Basketball.. I always had an aversion to that sport for some reason. And I can't hit a baseball to save my life. Although I may not be able to bat, I can definitely catch. My team in PE got the most outs because of that fact." Kasuma glanced at the magician, "I assume you can catch as well."

"Of course. I'm a magician!" Kaito pulled out four balls from a hidden pocket, "I wouldn't be able to do _this_ if I couldn't." He began juggling the colorful balls. "You wouldn't happen to know how to juggle, would you?"

"I've tried but I'm not the best at it. I think the longest I've lasted would be… probably around a minuet, maybe a little longer… but not by much. When it comes to magic, I think I'm better with slight of hand." Kasuma said.

"Ah yes, sleight of hand. One of my favorites." The four balls abruptly vanished and Kaito grinned, jogging up to his childhood friend and suddenly producing a red rose for her. Aoko blushed lightly, "What was that for Kaito?" she asked, accepting the fully bloomed blossom.

"Oh nothing!" Kaito announced, steering himself back to Kasuma with a "See?" directed at the girl.

Kasuma smirked, "I'm curious as to how much stuff you carry with you on a daily basis. Of course, you probably won't give me a straight answer. Magicians and their secrets, ne?"

Kaito shrugged, "I don't keep track so I don't even know. I just know that there's a lot with me everyday… unless I'm being forced to leave everything behind which is rare... and probably wouldn't work." Another grin appeared. "Which reminds me… I haven't flipped Aoko's skirt today. That needs to be remedied."

Kasuma grabbed a handful of Kaito hood, "No way. That's going to start another chase between you and Nakamori-san and I don't want to deal with two lovebirds circling us and having a love spat!"

Kaito pouted, "But chases are fun!" he paused as the last part of the sentence sunk in, "We don't have love spats!"

"That's what you think." Kasuma said, waving off his comment.

Kaito fell silent briefly. "You know, you just ruined our conversation."

"Well then all you have to do is revive it. I'll start." Kasuma paused, thinking of a question. "Eh, might as well. Are you related to Kuroba Touichi?"

"He's my father." Kaito also paused, "Maybe… have you seen one of his shows?"

Kasuma nodded slowly, almost grimly, as if she regretted bringing up the subject. "One show… his last."

If Kaito was affected by the statement, he didn't show it, his Poker Face still firmly in place despite the very brief waver Kasuma caught. Conan attempted to listen in more closely. "Aa… and you're the same age as me meaning you were about eight years old when that happened. That must have been horrible."

"Were you not there?"

"No, as much as I wanted to see his show, my kaa-san didn't want me up so late. In case you didn't remember, the next day was a school day… not that I went to school but…" Kaito trailed off.

Kasuma gave a sidelong glance at the teen next to her, searching his blank expression for something… Conan couldn't tell what. To him, the teen merely seemed to be moping about a memory. She finally sighed, quietly. "It was.. I'll spare you the details but it was definitely a sight I can't forget about." There was a brief quiver that ran through Kasuma's frame as she recalled the aforementioned sight. "But on a brighter note, the show was amazing. His finale, I'm sure, would have been amazing."

"It is… was. It's a shame he didn't get to perform it. Apparently it was a new trick he was experimenting with." Once again, there was another pause. "Maybe that's why it failed… because," Kaito took in a breath, "because it was new."

"Ne, ne, Kaito-niisan? Are you sad?" Conan asked, peering over his neck to look innocently up at Kaito. "Why are you sad?"

"He's sad because his tou-san is gone." Aoko said, turning to look at Conan.

"You mean like a vacation? Is Kaito-niisan's tou-san on vacation? Is that why he retired from being a magician?"

Aoko blinked, taken aback by the analogy. She then smiled, "Yeah, something like that."

"Then why is Kaito-niisan sad? People _always_ come back from vacations!"

There was a puff of smoke and Kaito laughed, "Now kid, who said I was sad?" Another puff of smoke appeared, this time accompanied by confetti. The bright, colorful squares covered the group and a few bystanders who were in the wrong place at the wrong time, the rest fluttering to the ground. Conan shook off the confetti that fell on him, making an effort not to frown at the cursed squares of paper floating around. "But that's what Aoko-neechan said!"

"Ah, but boy, you must remember... 'Aoko-neechan' is an ahou, alright Tantei-kun?" Kaito said, catching several pieces of confetti and pocketing them.

"Eeeh!" Kaito blinked, confused. "How did you know?" Conan exclaimed, shooting an accusing finger at the confused teenager.

"Know what?" Kaito asked, still clearly confused.

"That KID calls me Tantei-kun!" Aoko sent a suddenly suspicious glare to Kaito.

"I didn't." Kaito defended, "I thought the name fit… I mean you _are_ a Little Detective aren't you?… unless you'd rather have me call you _Chibi_tantei-kun."

Conan stuck out his tongue in disgust, telling Kaito just how much he liked _that_ suggestion. Kaito grinned, "That's what I thought you'd say. So Tantei-kun it is!"

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

August 29, 12:07 PM

"He did what?" Ran exclaimed, speaking through the phone.

"Da-ka-ra! Jirokichi-ojisama sent a challenge to Kaito KID in the paper, didn't you get a copy?" Sonoko replied.

"Yes, we got it… let's see… paper, paper." Ran looked through the papers on the Agency's desk for the day's newspaper.

"Ran-neechan, over here," A quiet voice piped up. Ran turned to find Conan sitting on the couch, a newspaper too big for his arm-span spread out on the table in front of him. He was looking pointedly at a large notice on the front page. "It says," Conan continued, "'I challenge you, Kaito KID, to steal the newest jewel of my collection tomorrow. Suzuki Jirokichi.'"

"So it does," Ran murmured.

"You see it?" Sonoko asked, excitement lacing her voice.

"Yeah, I see it. Has KID responded yet?" Ran asked, reading over the notice herself.

"Not yet… he's got two chances to respond."

"Why two?"

"It's because he has one chance to send in his reply in the evening paper and one chance to send in his reply in tomorrow's newspaper." Conan explained, folding the newspaper and replacing it on the desk.

"Was that chibi-chan?" Sonoko asked, "Is he going to attend?"

"Yes, that was Conan-kun and I don't know. I assume he will." Ran answered, glancing at Conan.

Sonoko heaved a big sigh, "Great, just great. He better not get in the way."

Ran laughed, "You sound like Nakamori-kebu. No, I'm sure he won't get in anyone's way." Ran looked at the clock in the room, "Oh no! I'm going to be late! I'm supposed to meet Kasuma at the mall. Uh, I gotta go Sonoko. Ja ne." Ran hung up and hurried to get her coat. Just as she was about to run out the door she backpedaled and turned to Conan, "Do you want to come with me, Conan-kun? Otou-san is still sleeping out that hangover he got yesterday."

Conan nodded and ran to meet Ran at the door.

* * *

Internet

Instant Messenger via World Wide Web

August 29, 12:14 PM

_d0r0b0r0s: Who is this Suzuki Jirokichi?_

_kk-kk8: he's from the Suzuki-zaibatsu. He loves challengin' me… not sure why but it's a great way to publicize urself._

_d0r0b0r0s: my publicity is just fine!_

_kk-kk8: yeah, in Europe and America. Not here_

_d0r0b0r0s: ur point?_

_kk-kk8: they're fun…?_

_d0r0b0r0s: heists are always fun… except when you get injured… badly. Anyway, on another note: are you gonna accept?_

_kk-kk8: kaito kid _never_ backs down from a challenge!_

_d0r0b0r0s: haha. Fine, fine. May lady luck be with us.._

_kk-kk8: she's always with us._

_d0r0b0r0s: not when I 'died'_

_kk-kk8: she must not 'a liked u but she likes me… maybe my luck will rub off on u.. we should try dat out_

_d0r0b0r0s: u shouldn't try ur luck_

_kk-kk8: I do dat all da time_

_d0r0b0r0s: den I guess it's 2 L8 4 u_

_kk-kk8: :D sidetrackin' ourselves… yes I'm gonna accept n so r u. maa, this new addition 2 his collection is a yellow citrine named Citrus Sun. it was recently found and therefore can't b our target but it'll b fun. N we get 2 show off! How fun will that b?_

_d0r0b0r0s: very. *sigh* I'm gonna run outta suits soon. Need to get more._

_kk-kk8: y not use 1 of mine? I've got plenty. N b4 u say 'I've already worn white' let me say that I think it would b fine if we matched. Good even. Ne, aibou?_

_d0r0b0r0s: I was already short on supplies when I came here so I'd need 2 get more stuff regardless. I have enough suits left 2 last 2 more heists. After that… I probably should stick to white. Do u no how hard it is 2 find a magenta suit? Or cerulean blue?_

_kk-kk8: i cant imagine.. never tried different colors.. always been white suit, white top hat, white etc… anyway, I'm placing our reply in tonight's paper so I need u 2 send me a copy of ur caricature._

_d0r0b0r0s: y do u need it?_

_kk-kk8: u'll c_

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Mega Mall

August 29 12:28 PM

"Finally!" Kasuma exclaimed, popping up in front of Ran, "I was wondering what took you so long. Did you run into a murderer on the way?"

"We did not!" Ran retorted, huffing. "I got distracted. Sonoko called about the challenge her uncle sent KID. It was in the newspaper, did you see it?"

Kasuma huffed this time, "Of course I saw it! I've been working in this mall since six am. How could I not hear about it? It's been the talk of the day! Honestly, I'm getting sick of it. Constant 'KID-sama! KID-sama!'" the girl sighed, "Maybe I should call in sick whenever there's a KID heist…"

Ran chuckled softly, "I hear you… It's all I hear from Sonoko when KID comes up. That and 'Oh, KID-sama, won't you steal me as well?' Honestly, Sonoko's giving me whiplash with the countless number of times she's switched from Makoto-san to KID."

Kasuma snickered, leading Conan and Ran to the ground floor where the food court was resting. "I wonder if I can make it to this heist… though that probably depends on what time KID's gonna specify. Do you think Masked Magician will be aiding him?"

"I wouldn't be surprised. They seem to have a genuine partnership for some strange reason." Ran fell silent briefly, "I'm curious as to why that happened. I mean, they seemed to have hit it off pretty well. They were practically partners by the end of Mage's first heist in Japan. KID's been known as a 'lone ranger' so to speak so why the sudden turnaround?"

"Maybe we can ask them when Nakamori-kebu catches them!" Conan chirped happily, bouncing cheerfully past them and turning his kiddy-act up all the way. 'In fact, I've been wondering about that myself.'

"Being a lone ranger is no fun," Kasuma murmured, "but that's beside the point… Hmm, I wonder if KID is fluent in English."

"What are you on about Kasuma?" Ran asked, quirking an eyebrow at her fellow brown-haired friend.

"Think about it: Mage has never been to Japan. All of his heists have been in America and Europe, mainly Great Britain, English speaking countries. Mage must have entered the country with little to no knowledge on the Japanese language. So KID must have a pretty good knowledge of the English language."

"I guess so… you have a point." Ran mused, mulling it over.

"But the heist note was in Japanese." Conan pointed out, "So he must have learned Japanese before coming here… and he didn't seem to have any problem talking to us during that first heist here. Doesn't that mean he knows Japanese?"

"Oh yeah, come to think about it, he _didn't_ have trouble speaking Japanese. Maybe he's just a fast learner." Ran suggested.

Conan chuckled very quietly, 'I highly doubt that. English is much different than Japanese.'

"Anyway," Kasuma said, finding her way to the line of a restaurant in the food court, "On another topic, have you finally opened that present Ran-san? You won't be able to hold that off for long."

Ran blushed and mumbled, "Try me."

"Mou! Will I have to open it for you?" Kasuma sighed, exasperated.

"If you can find it!" Ran added, grinning, "I hid it a while ago."

"That won't do you any good; I'm very good at hide 'n seek. It won't stay hidden for long," Kasuma exclaimed proudly, very swiftly pulling her attention away from the conversation to quickly order exactly what she wanted. Conan and Ran promptly followed suit and soon the three of them found themselves seated at a nearby table. "Oh yeah, did Sonoko mention anything about her day with Kyougoku-san? It kept slipping my mind and I forgot to ask her."

"No, she hasn't told me anything except that Makoto-san left to attend another karate tournament. I think she said it was in Nagasaki."

Kasuma whistled, "That far away? Taku, what is it these days with guys abandoning their girlfriends so frequently?"

"Shi-shinichi isn't my boyfriend!" Ran exclaimed, blushing furiously.

"Are re? Did I say anything about Shinichi-kun being your boyfriend?" Kasuma asked, tapping her chin lightly, "I don't recall even mentioning that." Ran's blush deepened, joined by Conan's own embarrassed blush. Kasuma spared one short glance at the faux child before grinning as she looked at Ran again.

"That grin reminds me of Kuroba-kun… He must be rubbing off on you." Ran mused, "Taku, you only met him once and you've already got that creepy grin down."

"What can I say? I'm a fast learner." Kasuma shrugged, finishing off the last of her food.

"Ne Kasuma…" Ran began, "Are you on a lunch break?"

"Yeah why?" Kasuma looked over her attire. Not finding anything out of the ordinary, she looked back up at Ran with a questioning gaze.

Ran waved her hands, "No, there's nothing wrong with your clothing… I just noticed your hat…" she trailed off.

"Hat…?" Kasuma raised her hand, searching for said hat. She pulled off the offending object and looked at it. "Aa… I see why this raised questions." She murmured, glancing at the black cap, "Taku… she's playing jokes again."

"Who?" Conan queered, leaning over to look at the hat.

"Yoshimi-san likes pasting stickers of American fast food restaurants on articles of my clothing." Kasuma peeled the Burger King sticker off of the hat before replacing it back on her head. "Yesterday it was Wendy's… She never fails to get me curious as to where she gets these stickers." Kasuma sighed and mumbled, very softly, "Populus me sibilat."

"What did you say?" Ran asked.

Kasuma shook her head, "Nanimonai."

* * *

Beika, Japan

Streets of Beika

August 30, 7:51 PM

"I'm glad you could make it to this heist Kasuma." Ran said following one excited Suzuki Sonoko to the location of the fore coming KID and Mage heist. "You finally get to see KID and Mage pull off a heist."

"Mou Ran-san, you're making it sound like it's my first Halloween or something. Besides, it wouldn't be the first heist I attended, I've been to a few Mage heists and one KID heist."

"Yeah but not a heist with the two of them working together," Ran pointed out, playfully waggling a finger in front of Kasuma face. The girl merely rolled her eyes and trained her eyes on the sky, where the moon was already present, shining, not as bright as usual, in the blue background.

"Tashika ni," Kasuma murmured, bringing her gaze downward to Conan who had his head in the newspaper from the previous evening. "Ne, Conan-kun… you reading the challenge reply again?"

Conan nodded happily, "Yeah. I _really_ want to know how they got their caricature into the paper. It looks so cool! Did you see it Kasuma-neechan?" Conan held out the paper to the girl who retrieved it and folded the paper so the notice was visible. Conan continued excitedly, "Do you see it, do you see it? It's so cool! I mean KID's caricature looks like his other notes but Mage put his wings on KID! Can't you see?"

"Yes I see Conan-kun, no need to get excited. Wouldn't want you to drop dead of exhaustion before the heist even starts now would we?" Kasuma laughed, studying the medley of the thieves' caricatures that was printed in the paper as they finally made their way into the bulk of the crowd.

* * *

Somewhere else in the crowd

August 30, 7:52 PM

A grin broke out, startling anyone who might have seen it, which was no one. What high school student would be more interesting than the impending arrival of two famous phantom thieves? So Kuroba Kaito's grin went unseen by the mere bystander. He restrained himself from laughing manically, because that would _really_ get people curious… or weirded out. There was no need to draw any attention to himself now was there? 'By now, I'm sure you've seen the paper, right Mage? Hopefully you understand my motive in getting your caricature now.' Kaito covered his even wider grin with the newspaper from the previous night, reading the acceptance notice again for the hundredth time. 'Challenge Status: Accepted. Arrival set at eight. –KID and Mage' Accompanying the end of the notice was KID's usual caricature with his trademark grin except this time, the wings that normally fell behind a jewel in Mage's caricature was added. 'KID's got wings now.' Kaito smirked, 'And everyone is now officially screwed.'

* * *

Elsewhere

August 30, 7:55 PM

"Uh, where did Conan-kun go?" Ran asked her current companion, Suzuki Sonoko, as they anticipated the arrival of the heist time. Her companion shrugged, eagerly looking to the sky for any sign of the phantom thieves. "And Kasuma disappeared too." Ran added, scanning the immediate area for said missing persons.

"Maybe she ran off looking for chibi-chan… Even when he said he wouldn't cause trouble, look what happens! He just up and disappears!" Sonoko huffed. "No matter, the heist is about to start and they better not decide to be late today."

* * *

On the rooftop of a nearby building

August 30, 7:56 PM

The click of a gun resonated in Conan's ear. He swiveled his head to find Kasuma pointing a weird gun at him. His eyes widened. "Kasuma…nee…chan?"

Kasuma sighed, "Can't you recognize a mask when you see it?"

"Mage," Conan narrowed his eyes.

Kasuma smirked. "I've taken a liking to this disguise. It's prefect."

"Where's the _real_ Kasuma, Mage." Conan spat out.

A shrug, "In one of the closets of this building… Can't remember which one."

"Why?" Conan asked, attempting to stall for time.

Another smirk from 'Kasuma'. "Well, I happened to find out that she attends the same school Kudo Shinichi does. I decided to switch with her and ended up finding Kudo-kun's childhood friend, Mouri Ran, if memory serves… I'm sure you know the phrase 'Now your enemies' right? Anyway, I decided to tag along after school with her and that's when I met you for the first time. I've used this disguise much more often than I would usually but Kasuma was getting me so much information! You… you ended up giving away enough information for me to guess your identity.. although the trip to your house was more useful than what I got directly from you. Of course, I won't spill. That's for you to decide, not me."

"Hm, so the real Kasuma doesn't know my secret?" Conan asked turning slightly.

"Don't move," Mage moved the gun to adjust. Conan flinched. "And no, not yet anyway… You really should have taken care of those childhood photos albums. I mean they were everywhere just begging to be opened! Apparently Mouri-san cleans your house often, you secret would be shot if she found one of those photo albums."

"Already happened once, she's been disproved on that theory." Conan answered, "On another note, where has she been while you've used her?"

"How cruel!" Mage exclaimed, "You're making me sound so horrible! Anyway, she has a _very_ busy work schedule at whatever mall she works at." The crowd below roared with excitement as the designated time of eight 'o clock came around, "Looks like that's my cue. Stop me it you can Tantei-kun."

"Oh I will," Conan turned around with his wristwatch ready but there was no one. "Sayonara," Conan turned again when he heard the thief's reply just as Masked Magician was ready to jump. Conan fired, Mage fired. "Wait! You and KID are partners right?" Conan yelled into the smoke that emitted from Mage's projectile. Conan heard some static through his glasses before the calm voice of the free-falling thief rang through, "I guess you could say that."

'How…?' Conan searched himself, pulling out a handful of Agasa's sticker transmitters and noting that one was missing. He ran to the edge of the building to see Masked Magician-no disguise-on top of the jewel's case. The crowd swarmed the area. Smoke appeared, concealing Masked Mage and the jewel case. Another plume of smoke rose and covered KID who had flown in shortly after Mage's jump, a propeller attached, ensuring that he stayed in one place. When the smoke cleared, Masked Mage had the jewel case between his legs. The crowd's cheering increased in volume. Masked Mage tossed the case behind his back, a simple flick in the thief's lower body that sent the case airborne, creating a flashy rainbow of light as the strobe lights focused on the spiraling case. Mage caught the case a pulled the jewel out and into a velvet pouch. The object was then tossed up to the awaiting thief above, who caught it neatly. KID's hang glider caught a strong gust of wind and he flew towards the bright moon. "Get Teams Alpha and Beta to chase KID! Now!" Nakamori ordered through his radio.

Before the Inspector could focus his attention back on the other thief, the now empty case stand and the people in the immediate area were shrouded in a thick cloud of blue smoke. When the smoke dispersed seconds later, there was a missing thief to deal with. Nakamori let out a string of profanities and ordered the remaining members of the Task Force to "Not let anyone leave, damnit!" Conan scanned the crowd from the roof of his current position, searching for any strange activity, 'What am I doing? If they don't want to stand out, they won't stand out.'

The not-boy departed the rooftop and focused on finding his way back to his guardians. He finally caught sight of Ran, 'Is that Kasuma?' he found himself thinking. His pace quickened. "Are you okay Kasuma?" Conan heard Ran asking.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Still a little woozy from the sleeping gas but Mage didn't do anything else." Kasuma replied, "And I couldn't even find Conan-kun."

"Here I am!" Conan exclaimed happily.

"Conan-kun! Where were you? I was worried!" Ran exclaimed, kneeling down in front of the boy.

"Gomen, Ran-neechan. I wanted to get a better view." Conan laughed nervously.

"Taku, don't run off like that next time." Ran chided the boy.

"Hai," Conan mumbled.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Suzuki Residence

August 30, 9:00 PM

The fax machine beeped, alerting the occupants of the mansion that there was an incoming message. When the beeping stopped, and a paper slipped out, the contents of the note could be read. 'If the jewel is hidden, its brilliance cannot shine. I'd… _we'd_ appreciate it if you displayed the true shine of the Sun –KID and Mage'

**Final Notes: Well… looks like Kasuma and Sonoko have hatched a plan of some sort. Wonder what it is.. Oh and the 'huge Egypt project' (plus hieroglyphics) was something that my 6****th**** Grade teacher really had us do (It was one of my favorite parts of the year :D) We created cartouches and each chose a topic in Ancient Egyptian customs like deities, food, archeology, clothing, et cetera.**

**Since Makoto doesn't show up often, I wasn't sure what to make of his character. All that I really knew was that he's pretty protective of Sonoko (which is sooo cute) so it probably seems OOC. I tried :D**

**Wow, I was not planning on Aoko and Kaito dropping in in this chapter. What was my mind thinking?**

**Alrighty, any ideas on what Ran's present is (the present that doesn't actually play a part until much, **_**much**_** later)? Cyber cookies to whoever gets it… If I remember to bake them. Also… cyber cookies will also be given to whoever guesses the foreigner Kasuma mentioned. (Doesn't have to be right… I just want to know who you all think it is) the same hint applies to y'all… Y'all've met this person, so now it's time to see how many detectives we have in the crowd!**

**Azarath: Oh and this *points to above challenge* does **_**not**_** apply to you DC.**

**DC: Aww man!**

**Azarath: *snicker*Swiper no swiping*snicker***

**DC: *rolls eyes* You're weird…**

**Azarath: 8D See you next time!**

**DC: Subject changer.**

**P.S.: I'd be ecstatic if I could get at least 6 more reviews : ) I know you can do it and the feedback (believe it or not) really **_**d**_**oes help us authors (and authoresses, in my case) I'd really like to know what you readers think about my story so far. (I have sooo much planned for this story :D ) If you don't, then… uh… I think of something**

**P.S.S.: Yay! I finally got a Beta… of sorts! Arigato gozaimasu Cai-chan!**

**(… I love to blab, don't I? I probably should stop that)**


	8. The Sun (6)

**A/N: This chapter concludes the Aibou Arc! Yay! The next chapter starts the Pandora Arc. Can you guess what the goal of this arc is? And starting next chapter (well actually it's sorta starting this chapter) I think I'll make a few minor changes. For example, spelling habits (one being -kebu changing to –keibu), and the length of chapters (which will be shortened slightly in order to (hopefully) update this story more often) Like I said, they're fairly minor so it won't be that big a deal so don't be confused or anything.**

**Warnings: A (significantly?) shorter chapter than usual and role-reversal (plus some exclamations that I will not translate)**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan! (arigato gozaimasu)**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): The reason why BETAs are so wonderful Cai-chan: Shouldn't **** be **** instead of ****?**

**Azarath: …Yes… yes it should**

**:D Love ya!

* * *

**

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: The Sun

* * *

Internet

Instant Messenger via World Wide Web

August 30, 9:45 PM

_d0r0b0r0s: does this usually happen?_

_kk-kk8: does wht usually happen?_

_d0r0b0r0s: the jewel being a fake_

_kk-kk8: with Jirokichi-sama's challenges, yes.. occasionally on regular heists 2 but not as often. There was the 1 time where he had 1 fake and 1 real target…(they were a pair of shoes-in case u were wonderin)_

_d0r0b0r0s: those shoes wouldn't happen 2 be the purple nail would they?_

_kk-kk8: y-yeah, how'd ya no?_

_d0r0b0r0s: it was supposed to b 1 o' my targets but it was suddenly moved from NYC to Tokyo… I never found out y it moved but now I no…_

_kk-kk8: oh.. well it's not Pandora, just so u no.._

_d0r0b0r0s: no duh brainiac, I kinda figured that…_

_kk-kk8: so mean~ hidoi!~_

_d0r0b0r0s: now dat I think bout it… there were a few other prospective targets that suddenly moved. He have anythin' 2 do with it would he?_

_kk-kk8: depends… what were ur targets?_

_d0r0b0r0s: da most recent 1 was the lady sky… n there was 1 other 1 that I can't remember 4 da life a me._

_kk-kk8: it wouldn't happen 2 b a jewel being held in da outstretched hand of a woman would it?_

_d0r0b0r0s: yup, dat's da 1_

_kk-kk8: thought so.. both were bought by Jirokichi-sama den stolen by me… none a dem were Pandora_

_d0r0b0r0s: obviously, otherwise u'd be retired by now_

KID leaned back, raising his arms and stretching them out before swiveling in his seat to work out the kinks in his wound-up back. A large yawn forced its way out and his fingers returned to the keyboard to swiftly type out.

_kk-kk8: speakin a retiring… I should b doin dat right about now.. otherwise I'll b a mess 4 2morrow's heist_

_d0r0b0r0s: agreed. Oyasumi nasai_

_kk-kk8: rite back at ya_

Both thieves were off their respective computers in seconds and drifting off seconds later.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

August 31, 7:48 AM

Conan bit back a yawn as he finished his morning routine, rubbing sleep from his eyes as he trudged out of his shared sleeping space with the older detective—who had yet to arise himself—and into the kitchen where he saw Ran preparing breakfast. "Ohayo, Conan-kun!" She turned when she heard the approaching boy.

Conan mumbled a quiet "Ohayo" as he shuffled to her side. He grabbed a stool and set it beside his guardian's feet before climbing up, "What's for breakfast?"

"Some scrambled eggs and bacon with pancakes." Ran began, "I can probably pull out some leftov—"

Ran was interrupted by the clicking of the apartment door's lock and a loud, familiar, female voice yelling what—to Conan—seemed to be a string of curses in a different language, if the harsh, vehement tone was any indication. "Paghilum, _bastus_!" the loud sound of a phone snapping shut and an exasperated huff could be heard as the 'intruder' entered the kitchen. "Ran-san… I think I left my bag somewhere around here. Did you see it anywhere?" Kasuma asked the girl at the stove.

"Yeah, I put it in my room but first… what was all _that_ about?" Ran asked, indicating the outburst in a foreign language.

"Wha—?... Oh nothing, just ignore that. I lost my temper is all," Kasuma shrugged off, heading towards Ran's room to look for the aforementioned bag.

Conan leapt off the stool and jogged after Kasuma, meeting her inside Ran's bedroom where the girl was crouched in front of the closet with the door opened. "Kasuma-neechan… were you swearing?" he asked innocently.

Kasuma started and whipped her head around to stare at Conan. "D-did…c-could you understand m-me?" she nearly screeched.

"No…" Conan shook his head, "I was just wondering."

Kasuma let out a sigh and started searching the closet, finally digging out a light green gym bag from the back of the closet. "Good thing I wasn't speaking Eng—Japanese." She smirked to herself, "I really need to get out of that habit."

"What habit?" Conan queered.

"My habit of trying to say English in sentences like that…" she paused, "Well, and the… other uses I have for my… collection of languages." She chuckled, "_Really_ bad habit."

Ran's voice rang out, interrupting Conan from his incoming response. "Conan-kun, breakfast is ready! Kasuma do you want to stay?"

Teen and boy departed Ran's room and met said room owner just as she finished placing the morning's meal on the table. Kasuma slung the bag over her shoulder and pulled her brown hair up into a ponytail. She patted her bag before looking at Ran, "I have to work this morning, which is why I needed to stop by. Somehow, my bag found its way here and I need it today."

"Oh, well good luck at work!" Ran replied brightly. "You have to do your best, ne?"

"Of course," Kasuma answered, waving. "Well gotta go. Ja ne!" the girl opened the door and departed.

Ran took a seat after summoning her father and looked at Conan, "School will be starting soon, do you have everything you need?"

Conan nodded eagerly, "Yup, I have everything."

"Good," the girl sighed, "Summer break went by fast and now we're going to be starting school again soon. You know… maybe you should hang out with Ayumi-chan and the others. You won't have as much time when school starts."

Conan nodded again, agreeing, "So is it alright if I go to Agasa-hakase's house? I wanna see if he has a new game."

"Sure, just make sure you get back before eight if you want to make it to the heist."

That statement grabbed Conan's attention. "What heist?"

"Sonoko texted me a few minutes ago saying that KID and Mage sent a note to their house requesting that they display the real Citrus Sun tonight. It seems Jirokichi-ojisama placed a fake jewel on the stand yesterday and the thieves want him to show the real jewel tonight at eight."

"Sweet!" Conan gobbled up the rest of his breakfast, "I'll make sure to be back by then." Conan jumped and scooped up his skateboard from its resting place against the wall before throwing the door open. "Ja ne, Ran-neechan!" the boy was soon out the door and skateboarding down a familiar route.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

August 31, 7:56 AM

"Well, well, so good of you to visit." Haibara deadpanned as she saw the faux boy throwing his skateboard against the wall, "And here I thought you'd be with the love of your life protecting her from her new friend."

"Why bother? Kasuma's at work." Conan shot back, helping himself to a fresh cup of his beloved coffee.

An eyebrow shot up past the scientist's hairline. "So you admit protecting her from Kasuma?"

"It's not protecting!" Conan defended, "I'm just keeping an eye on Kasuma… I don't trust her. I think… no I'm _sure_ she's hiding something."

Haibara smirked, "Something worth hiding from the Great Detective Kudo Shinichi has _got_ to be good. I wonder what it is." Haibara strode over to the kitchen where Conan was and deposited her empty coffee cup in the sink. She turned to peer at Conan for an uncomfortable amount of time.

"What? Is there something on my face?" Conan glared at the girl.

"No," Haibara shrugged. "I was just debating whether or not I should tell you… not that you'd be interested."

"What is it?"

"Oh, so you _are_ interested." Haibara returned, smirking again before sobering up quickly. "I've been getting a weird feeling around Kasuma."

"You mean… is it the same as when you sense _Them_? Is she one of _Them_?"

"Not quite… Whatever it is, I certainly haven't experienced it before now. It isn't the kind of sensation that absolutely petrifies me but… there's something familiar about it."

"Which gives me an even better reason to keep an eye on her," Conan murmured, filling his emptied cup with more coffee. "She must have a connection to the Men in Black if she's getting a reaction out of you."

Haibara directed her icy glare on Conan, "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing," Conan brushed off, "On another note, have you made any progress on the antidote?"

"You're actually asking? Instead of abruptly asking for more temporary cures?" Haibara sighed, shaking her head, "There hasn't been any significant advancement… you're body still thinks your real body is 'sick' whereas your fake body is 'healthy' and is acting accordingly." (A/N: I have a feeling I stole that idea from someone. I'm sorry if I did.)

"If only my body would start to think that my real body is the 'healthy' one," Conan mumbled, downing the rest of his cup and placing it in the sink.

Haibara paused, running the idea through her head, "That… might… actually make some headway." The scientist immediately fled the kitchen and headed down a flight of stairs. Conan rushed over, yelling after her, "Oi, don't go down to the lab _now_, Genta and the others will be here soon!"

As if on cue, the doorbell rang and Conan could faintly hear the murmur of chattering children. Letting out a long sigh, Conan trudged to the door and opened it, replacing his previous expression with a mask of childish excitement, "Hey guys!"

The three kids ran in—rather Genta and Ayumi ran… Mitsuhiko settled for a leisurely stroll—and went straight for the couches in the living room, plopping down and bouncing excitedly. Mitsuhiko, as his eyes were scanning the expansive room, pointed out, "Is it just me or is there less furniture than usual? And there's a really strange smell in here… like something was burning."

This stopped the two bouncing detectives-to-be and they too sniffed around. "Hountou ni!" Ayumi exclaimed, "It _does_ smell like something was burning. What happened here?"

There was the sound of scuffling feet as Haibara appeared once again, "Another one of Agasa-hakase's inventions exploded this morning. Some of the furniture was burned in the process… not too badly but it still left a horrible smell."

"Oh no! None of you were hurt were you?" Ayumi asked, worry clouding her young face.

Haibara shook her head before answering, "Hakase got a few minor burns but nothing serious… and we got a little help cleaning up so most of the remnants are out of the way."

"Help? From whom?" Mitsuhiko asked, polite as ever.

"The new resident of this neighborhood, Kazuki Kasuma." Haibara stated bluntly.

"Kasuma-oneesan? She lives nearby? That's awesome!" Ayumi exclaimed.

"You didn't mention _that_." Conan hissed.

"I didn't think it was worth mentioning." Haibara shot back, "The only even remotely interesting information is her offer for me to move in with her."

"WHAT?" Conan exclaimed, barely managing to keep his voice low enough for only Haibara and himself to hear.

* * *

_A loud explosion rocked the neighborhood, waking many of the residents of said neighborhood, though most of them ignored the blast for they had grown accustomed to these types of explosions. Out of the smoke emerged the portly man known as Agasa Hiroshi, one Haibara Ai following him, calmly fanning the smoke away as she walked through the new hole in the wall. 'It seems we'll need to replace that… again.' She thought grimly scanning the damage. Haibara tensed as a strange sensation washed over her, her small form shivering ever so slightly. Her first thought was, and always has been, that the organization had found her and was coming to finish her off but the strange sensation disappeared rapidly, replaced only by the voice of a new, but familiar person. "Oi! Are you alright?"_

_Haibara's suspicions were confirmed as she turned and spotted Kasuma running down the street to the smoking house. The older girl—barely—stopped short when she saw the familiar faces, "Agasa-hakase? Ai-chan?" Haibara frowned and growled very quietly after hearing the un-formal address. When did she give Kasuma the permission to address her as 'Ai-chan'? "Are you two okay?"_

"_We're fine, Kasuma-kun." Agasa replied, coughing and waving more smoke away._

"_What happened here anyway?" Kasuma asked, eying the good sized hole in the wall. The girl began picking up some of the stones and piled them up against an undamaged portion of the wall._

"_Well… I was working on one of my inventions when it… backfired." The man chuckled nervously. "Nasty holes those things can make. It's a good thing I was outside experimenting… although the windows were opened…"_

"_There's no fire, is there?" Kasuma asked almost hysterically, paling rapidly and backing away subtly. That reaction earned a raised eyebrow from Haibara as she noted Kasuma's movement and stored it away for possible future reference. Haibara answered for the professor, "I extinguished the small fire in the living room before any real damage could be made. One of the couches was burned but, like I said, no real damage was done."_

_Kasuma exhaled as the color returned to her face. "Good, that would have been disastrous if a fire broke out. Who knows how fast it would have spread?" Agasa stood and joined Kasuma in transporting the rubble to a new location. "Hakase! Wait, your burns should be treated first! Come, my house is nearby; I have a first aid kit there," Kasuma then proceeded to drag the protesting professor down the street and into a large Western mansion that indeed was nearby, Haibara following quietly behind. The two of them were led to a large room filled with old (and slightly dusty, if you looked carefully enough) books. A first aid kit was sitting on the desk in the room, seemingly used recently. Kasuma firmly ordered the professor to sit and opened the kit, fishing out antiseptic and cotton swabs._

_The professor chuckled, "Well isn't this nostalgic."_

"_Hmm?" Kasuma murmured, wetting a swab and dabbing the tip on one of Agasa's burns._

_Agasa chuckled again, "Shinichi-kun was always doing this to me when one of my experiments blew… it always tended to make him late for school but he never failed to help out."_

"_Oh yeah, come to think of it, Shinichi-kun _did_ mention your tendency to have your experiments backfire on you."_

_Haibara wandered around the library, scanning the titles of books as she went. She pulled one off the shelf, brushing off the thin layer of dust and reading the title aloud, "__The Westing Game__ by Ellen Raskin… that's a mystery isn't it?"_

"_Hmm?" Kasuma glanced over her shoulder to look at Haibara, "Yeah, it has quite a bunch of riddles. I read that for school in sixth grade back in America."_

_Haibara returned the book and pulled out another, "__Black Coffee__, Agatha Christie… Poirot?"_

"_Yup, my first Agatha Christie book. My parents gave it to me for my birthday years ago." Kasuma responded immediately._

_Haibara looked through the other books on the shelves. "Gregory Maguire, Carolyn Keene, Arthur Golden, William Goldman, James Clavell, Sophocles, Homer… Kudo_ Yuusaku_? You have the Night Baron series?"_

"_Yeah, my friend recommended it, said it was 'the best series out there.' It _is_ really good. I have to admit, I didn't really have high expectations but it definitely is a good read."_

"_Shinichi-kun will _love_ to hear _that_." Agasa murmured, looking around at the other titles in the room._

"_Shinichi-kun…?" Kasuma started, "You don't mean to tell me… Kudo Yuusaku is…?"_

"_Shinichi-kun's father," Agasa finished._

_Kasuma 'hmm'ed and pasted on one last band-aid before disposing of the used cotton swabs and closing the first aid kit. "That really was dangerous… is it alright for you to be there Ai-chan?"_

"_It can't be helped," Agasa shrugged, "If Shinichi-kun's parents were around more often or if Shinichi-kun himself was around, I could have arranged for Ai-kun to stay with them but they're never around anymore. And I couldn't ask Ran-kun to take care of _another_ one of my relatives; she's already got Conan-kun on her hands. Taking care of Ai-kun would just be too much." _

"_Relatives? Conan-kun and Ai-chan? I didn't know that…" Kasuma mumbled._

_"Oh, well we're very _distant_ relatives but yes, relatives."_

"_You know… I could take care of Ai-chan. There's plenty of room here in my house and it _does_ get a little lonely. Not to mention my place is close to yours"_

"_Oh I couldn't burden you…"_

"_It's no burden." Kasuma interrupted, "I'd love to. That is, of course, if it's alright with Ai-chan…? After all, I can't force you if you don't want to."_

_Haibara turned away from the teenager, staring at the bookshelf. Memories—more memories than she'd like—of Akemi flooded her mind. The scientist shook her head discreetly. "Why?" she whispered._

'_Why? Because _he_ was about your age when…' Kasuma didn't allow her thought to finish and she smiled gently, "It's nice to have company, isn't it? You're not alone. Besides, it'd be nice to have a little sibling aga—" Kasuma cut herself off before her sentence could complete but Haibara could easily piece together the rest of the sentence. 'What did you mean by that?' Haibara silently asked, hoping, but at the same time not hoping, Kasuma could read her thoughts._

"_Ai-kun? Would that be alright with you? I mean all your lab equipment is at my place…" Agasa stopped himself and Haibara tensed, dreading the response she expected Kasuma to have._

"_This house is supposed to room at least four people, there's room for a lab… I have a small one myself. What do you work on in your lab Ai-chan?"_

'_And there's the million dollar question.' Haibara thought_ _sardonically, 'Guess I'll have to act my age…' Haibara plastered on a smile and turned happily exclaiming, "I'm making rock crystals! I've already got _lots_ of colors… I gave them away to some of my classmates! I'm out right now," Haibara pouted briefly, "But there's a store nearby that has _everything_ I need and that's where Hakase buys my supplies!"_

_Kasuma chuckled silently and smiled, "I always loved making rock crystals and I probably have a few around here from years past. I don't mind a little extra equipment… it's a large room."_

"_Well, that's settled." Agasa replied, a bit nervous._

_Kasuma chose that time to glance at the clock in the room, "Aw crap… I have to go." Kasuma hurriedly placed the first aid kit in a drawer of the library desk and opened another drawer, searching through the contents. Several items were pocketed and Kasuma looked directly at Haibara, "Think about it, Ai-chan… I won't hold it against you if you decline, I'm practically a stranger but give it some thought first. The front door is in the same place!" Kasuma yelled behind her as she quickly departed the library and soon the house.

* * *

_

"So you didn't give her an answer?" Conan asked the teenager-turned-girl.

"I didn't have _time_ to answer her!" Haibara retorted. "She left right after that!"

"Maybe you should…" Conan murmured.

"Oi," Haibara glared, "What part of 'I get a weird feeling around Kasuma' don't you understand?"

Conan shrugged carelessly, "If you're around her more often, maybe you'll find out _why_ she gives you a weird feeling."

"How can you be so carefree during times like this?" Haibara hissed, "She could be a dangerous enemy and I'd be walking right into a trap, and you say 'maybe you'll find out _why_ she gives you a weird feeling'? What is _wrong_ with you? This is like the time you let Subaru-san stay in your house and the sensations I'd been getting were _much_ worse than what they are now."

"Then you have nothing to worry about." Conan declared, "Subaru-san got himself a new apartment and you said yourself Kasuma isn't giving you 'organization vibes'. You should be fine… and the professor will always be nearby."

Haibara sighed deeply, "You're hopeless… and extremely dense. And weren't _you_ the one who said you 'think she's hiding something'?"

"I'm going to ignore that first sentence." Conan turned to face Haibara, "Think of it this way: If you move in with Kasuma, you can be the eyes on the inside, you know, monitor her movements and look for anything strange. One point to look for, her so-called 'little brother' who's staying with her. From everything she's said so far, she _does_ have one but he's never around. Where _is_ her otouto? How about her parents? She's mentioned previous guardians but not _who_ exactly. Another point: her name change. She use to go by Takashi Kasuma but now it's Kazuki Kasuma… What was the reason behind that? If you're staying with her, we can find out more information like that about her. Then she won't be much of an enigma anymore."

"And suddenly 'you' morphed into 'we.'" Haibara muttered.

"So?" Conan grinned, "Didn't I say we were partners?" The reminder silenced the scientist and it was then that Agasa entered and noticed the kids. The older man chuckled, "I didn't expect to see you so soon."

The room was briefly filled with "Agasa-hakase!" and "Hakase!" as the occupants welcomed the professor. Ayumi was the first to bound over to the professor, "We can go to the park, can't we? We wanna play ball!"

"Yes, that's perfectly alright." Agasa answered.

"Are your burns alright Hakase?" Mitsuhiko asked worriedly.

"Burns…? Oh right. Yes, thank you for your concern Mitsuhiko-kun, but I'm alright." The professor patted a band-aid on his cheek. "It'll take much more than a small explosion to knock _this_ inventor down!"

Conan managed a small scoff before his arm was violently jerked by the bubblier female in the Shonen Tantei dan, "Ikuzo, Conan-kun!" Ayumi happily exclaimed, not noticing the glares that were being sent in Conan's direction by the remaining two boys of the group. The helpless boy was dragged out of Agasa's house and into the awaiting yellow Beetle that belonged to the professor. As soon as Agasa entered the car, they were driving towards the closest park.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Park

August 31, 11:26 AM

Conan fell backwards onto the grassy hill and closed his eyes, breathing heavily as he tried to catch his breath. An arm was thrown over his eyes, blocking out the streams of sunlight peeking through the boy's eyelids. Conan vaguely noted a shuffling sound next to him and the voice that spoke up startled him greatly. "Did the other kids wipe you out?" Conan moved his arm and opened one eye to catch sight of Kasuma. He didn't get to respond for the girl continued, "You know, if I was a kidnapper, that inattentiveness would have cost you greatly."

Conan closed his eyes again, this time paying more attention to his surroundings, "But you're not a kidnapper, Kasuma-neechan!" he answered brightly. "By the way, are you on a lunch break, Kasuma-neechan?"

"The detective strikes again." Kasuma murmured, smiling softly as she watched Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko run around the field below them, a soccer ball moving swiftly in time with the kids. "Your leaving made the teams uneven… does Ai-chan not like soccer?"

'Ai-chan…?' Conan dismissed the thought and replied with, "Not really… actually, I'm not sure what sport she likes. I mean, Haibara comes to watch soccer games when we get tickets but if she actually _enjoys_ it… I don't know."

Kasuma didn't respond, instead grabbing something from her bag. Conan then felt a nudge on the arm covering his eyes. The boy shifted, opening one eye again to see just what had nudged him. He found himself staring at a piece of onigiri, "Want some? You must be hungry after all that running around."

Conan's stomach answered before his mouth could, a loud grumbling forcing its way out. Kasuma laughed quietly and firmly placed the rice ball in Conan's hand. The boy muttered a quiet 'Thank you' before stuffing the food in his mouth. "You really _are_ hungry, aren't you?" Kasuma murmured. "I have more… help yourself."

"Aren't you going to have some?" Conan asked, reaching for another piece of onigiri.

"I already ate most of my lunch. So you can have the rest." The girl shrugged. "What's the paper sticking out of your pocket?" the subject changed.

Conan paused, tugging said paper free from his pocket. He stared at it in mild shock, "It's… the heist note… from KID and Mage… When did _that_ get in there?" the not-child mumbled.

"Has anyone solved the note yet? Maybe Mouri-ojisan?"

"No, he hasn't and Nakamori-keibu doesn't seem to have solved it either. Maybe you could solve it Kasuma-neechan!" Conan answered with growing eagerness.

Kasuma scooted next to Conan, "Why don't you read the note aloud?"

Conan nodded before beginning, "'Beneath the full moon, when the chimes ring the smallest prime, the orange moon will be discovered once again by man. Start with nine, separate in(to), remove one half –KID and Mage' I wonder what they're trying to say _this_ time. What do you think Kasuma-neechan?"

"Hmm, well there are a few phrases that caught my attention. The 'beneath the full moon' section is pretty self-explanatory; it's the next part that strikes as strange: 'When the chimes ring the smallest prime.' And the last sentence 'Start with nine, separate in(to), remove one half' is formatted strange. Since it's KID and Mage, I'm going to assume that the parentheses are supposed to be there. But I'm not sure _why _they're there."

Conan stared at the note a while longer before coming to a realization. "Ne, Kasuma-neechan, I think I know what the 'smallest prime' part means!"

"Oh? Tell me your deduction, Conan-kun." Kasuma said, waiting for Conan's explanation.

"We were talking about it in class a while back. Prime numbers!" Kasuma made an action for him to continue, "Prime numbers are numbers that are only divisible by one and itself. And if it's the _smallest_ prime number, than that would be—"

"Two." Kasuma finished, "I see where you're going. On the night of the full moon, those two are going to arrive at two in the morning to steal their target... whatever _that_ is… it must be the 'orange moon' that was mentioned."

"Kasuma-neechan, what kinds of gems are naturally orange in color?" Conan asked the girl.

"I thought you'd know…" Kasuma murmured, "Ran-san said you learned a lot of random stuff from TV programs you watched."

"But I heard Ran-neechan say that you really liked studying rocks and gems so I thought you'd know more about that," Conan responded cheerily.

"Alright, alright… orange gems or rocks…? Ametrine, angelskin coral, bismuth, citrine, fluorite, golden sapphire—and sapphires in general—hessonite, Malaya garnet, orange beryl… orange tourmaline." Kasuma paused, thinking, "There's also aventurine feldspar, fire agate, precious topaz… padparadscha—only _those_ are really rare kinds of sapphires that have a pink-orange color so it's unlikely either KID or Mage would cross paths with one of them. There's also spessartite garnet, spinel, and amber… I could go on but I think that's a good enough list."

"That's a really long list," Conan remarked, looking over the note.

"There's a new exhibit at the museum that has several garnets, sapphires, topazes, and amethysts but I don't think KID or Mage would target any of them… they go after really big jewels right?" Conan nodded, "It seems like most of the jewels there are fairly small… there might be one or two large gemstones but I can't be sure. And if their target is from a specific family, it would be even harder to narrow down." Kasuma leaned back and closed her eyes, "On another topic, you wouldn't happen to know where Ran-san put the gift I assembled for her, would you?"

Conan froze, his eyes darting to the lounging teen and feeling greatly thankful when he saw her closed eyes. "…I have no idea what Ran-neechan did with the present. Why do you want it?"

"I found something at the Mega Mall… it just got into stores and on top of that it's a completely new line of products. I saw something that would suit her perfectly and I want to slip it into the present… it's already slightly opened so it won't be too difficult." The girl sighed, opening one eye, "The problem is I haven't gotten much time to ransack her place for the present so I don't know where it is at the moment… I wonder if I could get a chance tonight after work while Ran-san is accompanying you to the heist."

'Oi, oi… _ransack_… that's a bit strong isn't it?' Was the thought that ran across Conan's mind when Kasuma quieted down and closed her eye again, 'How about a change of subject…' Conan sat up, "Ne, Kasuma-neechan, did you _really_ offer Haibara a place to stay?"

"Hmm…? Yeah. I assume she mentioned it to you." Kasuma said aloud while silently adding, 'Just like I wanted her to.' "…Well, I'm not expecting her to accept… she'd be more comfortable with Agasa-hakase because she's more familiar with him but…" the girl trailed off, "Hmph, and Shinichi-kun was on his own for four years? I wonder if he ever got lonely… Even now he's still on his own… wherever he is."

'That would be right here,' Conan silently remarked, 'And I'm not alone.' "When does your lunch break end, Kasuma-neechan?"

Kasuma sat up and looked at her watch, frowning, "In about ten minuets. It's a good thing the mall is nearby." Kasuma was immediately attacked by three small bodies as soon as she finished her sentence, the force knocking the teen back to the ground again as she struggled with the three children that had performed the attack. It happened too fast for Conan or Haibara to catch but in the next second, Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko were lying on their sides, clutching their stomachs and giggling up a storm. The two not-children blinked, confused as to what the method of retaliation was. The three kids recovered shortly after and seemed much more wary around the older girl, positioning Conan and Haibara in between them and the teenager. Kasuma grinned proudly and Conan noted how similar the grin was compared to his look-alike's, Kuroba Kaito. A shudder racked the boy's small frame and he pushed the (rather disturbing) image out of his mind. Kasuma looked at her watch again and frowned, "Looks like I have to get going… I'll see you kids later, alright?"

The three _real_ children pouted but submitted and said their farewells. Until, "Ano…" a quiet voice spoke up.

Kasuma froze, turning around to face the speaker, "Nani?"

"Yes." Haibara responded tersely.

Kasuma was wearing a confused expression as she further prodded the girl, "Yes on what?"

"Moving in with you. I… think I'd like that," the girl said, staring at the ground and acting unusually shy.

The teenager smiled softly and nodded, "Alright, whenever you're ready, we can move your stuff over to my place," Kasuma looked at her watch, "Not now of course… maybe tonight?"

Haibara nodded silently and Kasuma ran out of the park, heading back to the mall. There was a resounding 'Ehh!' and everyone looked at Conan. "Kasuma-neechan left her lunch!" the boy picked up the plastic container that was once filled with food, fastening the lid over the top. 'Guess I'll have to give it to her later.'

* * *

Beika, Japan

Streets of Beika

August 31, 7:55 PM

Conan pushed his way to the front of the crowd, his small body squeezing through the tight, narrow gaps between people. The jewel case that held the real Citrus Sun was resting in the center of the circle created by the bystanders. Four police officers stood around the jewel with their backs turned towards the case, watching for any suspicious activity, all four of them sporting a good sized red mark on their cheeks. Nakamori stood in between the guards and the crowd speaking very loudly and colorfully through his radio about nets… or was it bets? Conan couldn't tell for sure. Until, that is, Conan looked up and caught sight of a large, almost clear net that at this moment was being secured to the roofs of the four shortest and closest buildings on the block. 'Make that 'nets'.' Conan concluded. The officers securing the net didn't move when they completed their task, instead making themselves as comfortable as they could on each of their respective roofs and training their eyes on the knot work (and the net in general) that had been set up. From what Conan had just heard from the (colorfully) ranting Nakamori-keibu, the net had been ordered by Suzuki Jirokichi to ensure that whichever thief descended from the sky (or both, if they were lucky) would be ensnared by the net, therefore trapping them and allowing a fairly clean arrest to 'add to my already large list of successes' according the Suzuki-zaibatsu head. "Bring the nets up!" Nakamori bellowed into his radio.

Conan could faintly hear the prompt "Yes sir!" from the officers through the radio and shortly after that, several helicopters hovered in and four separate nets were dropped down, suspended and tied off in between the spaces between the buildings on the block. 'I see what's going on here,' Conan thought, 'They're effectively blocking KID and Mage's escape route… whatever that may be.' The boy smirked, "This is the second time, isn't it KID? I wonder if you're going to change it up like last time."

Jirokichi stood closer to the crowd than he did the spherical yellow citrine, surrounded by the ever present news reporter as the man boasted about how he would finally capture KID _as well as_ Mage and how airtight his security was. Although he missed the first part, Conan heard the challenger exclaim, "…My plan is simply to catch them in their weakest areas."

"Would you care to explain, Suzuki-sama?" the female reported inquired.

"Not at all!" the man exclaimed, "It won't matter if those two heard, they won't be able to do anything about it. I'm positive on the fact that they will repeat the same trick again tonight. And since they can't use it in the same way, what with them being magicians, they'll probably switch roles. Hence the nets." The camera man panned the immediate area, showing off the five nets that had been positioned around the jewel. "KID's weak point is the ground so the four surrounding nets will effectively trap him inside. On the other hand, Mage's weak point is the air for he has only figured out how to use a hang glider recently…"

"Yes, it _has_ been pointed out that Mage came forth with his glider with his reappearance in America less than a year ago, while KID has had his glider for years."

"Exactly! Flying has never been a strong point for Mage, if his countless number of crashes says anything. And _not_ flying has never worked for _KID_. We'll trap them both when they are weakest!" the older man finished, laughing.

"I thought the reason Mage kept crashing was because someone kept shooting him down, not because he was inexperienced," Conan was shocked to hear Ran murmur those words as she stood behind him, listening to Jirokichi.

"Ran-neechan, how do you know that?" Conan questioned the teenager.

"A while back, I looked around a little for more information about Mage. According to the websites I found, that reporter's information is wrong." Ran crouched down, leveling herself with her young charge. "The sites said that Mage didn't start flying when he got to America but that he was flying during the last few months of his stay in Europe as well. During those months, there were numerous times when Mage would suddenly drop out of the sky like when someone goes bird hunting. No one is quite sure what _exactly_ happens when Mage crashes but they _do_ know that Mage's glider was always the target of those shots."

"However," a gruff voice interrupted the girl. "There_ have_ been some stranger shootings that occasionally… no _frequently_ appeared at Mage heists." Conan and Ran looked up to see a (fairly) calm Inspector Nakamori. "The same thing happens at KID heists as well… even though _both_ of them are _NON-violent_! ... Actually, a more accurate description of those shootings should be _sniping_." Ran muffled a small gasp at the word. "Both of them have gotten very adept at dodging… in more than one way so none of them seemed to have gotten injured badly… Then again, we can never tell for sure. We received an anonymous tip from someone who gave us the info the old man is bragging about as well as info about the sniping that has been occurring at Mage heists."

"Why would they be attacked… either of them?" Conan asked the inspector.

Nakamori pinched the bridge of his nose, frowning, "I wish I knew. But _someone_ wants KID and Mage _out_ of the picture… for good."

"It's a shame you don't know who gave you the tip." Ran murmured.

Nakamori shrugged, glancing at his watch, "I vaguely recognized the voice but I can't remember who it belongs to."

"Maybe it was another police officer!" Conan cheerily remarked. The boy paused, thinking, "But why would he… or she want to stay anonymous if they were an officer?"

Nakamori was cut off suddenly by a cloud of pink smoke shrouding the case and the people in the immediate area. Conan heard the inspector run towards the case, uttering another colorful string of curses. Conan himself would have advanced if it weren't for the hand that was suddenly around his upper arm, said hand attached to his caretaker, the girl ensuring that Conan was indeed safe and hadn't gotten lost in the smoke. The aforementioned smoke was dispelled rather quickly and in its place stood the infamous Kaito KID, his ever present smirk mocking the Task Force members as he made himself comfortable on his perch on the jewel stand. Repeating the same action Mage had performed the previous night; KID effortlessly opened the case and extracted the jewel, placing the yellow sphere into a velvet pouch. Conan searched the surrounding area for the second Phantom Thief, who had yet to show his face. "KID!" Nakamori bellowed.

KID tipped his hat towards the inspector, "Good evening to you as well Keibu." The thief grinned briefly before sobering up and tapping his chin thoughtfully, "By any chance, Keibu, have you seen my partner around here? Maybe he was wandering around in the crowd?"

Nakamori cursed, exclaiming, "He would have been behind bars by now!"

KID 'tsk'd, admonishing the inspector, "Now, now, Keibu. No partner of _mine_ would let himself get caught _that_ easily! Surely he's around here _somewhere_…" KID paused dramatically, "Maybe someone in the audience knows where he went." KID cleared his throat before addressing the entire crowd. "Ladies and Gentlemen! I would like to pose a question to anyone who can answer…" KID cleared his throat again, "Has anyone seen my partner, Masked Magician?"

Briefly the crowd was silent, many of them looking around, searching for a sign that would give away the location of the missing thief. So it was a surprise to everyone when suddenly the block was filled by the echoes of laughter. The heist attendees looked side to side, up and down for the source of the laughter that had seemed to have floated in from… well… everywhere. A cloud of smoke made itself known and eyes were turned to the sky. A new and completely unfamiliar voice rang through the block, a voice that delicately balanced in between a male and a female, "What a nice view from up here."

The second thief smirked behind the white mask, the false tresses of a shoulder length orange wig blowing gently in the wind. Mage stood above the crowd, directly in the middle of the net closing the crowd and KID in, treating the net as one large tightrope spun together in a checkered pattern, one orange clad foot balancing itself on the thin but strong rope, the other mirroring its pair. The large white wings that posed as Mage's hang glider closed, releasing the cape that was used to help the thief fly. Mage peered at the jewel stand, more specifically KID, and addressed the partner down below, "I hope you have a good arm KID. It seems I won't be able to join you down there."

KID didn't respond, instead launching the velvet clad jewel into the air, miraculously missing the rope of the net. With little effort, Mage bent over and caught the pouch, tucking the package into an inner pocket of his orange suit jacket. The thief's hands—gloved of course— were nonchalantly stuffed into the pockets of his matching orange pants, a much too vibrant color, and Mage sent a glance the inspector's way, "I'm sorry to cut off my time here so abruptly but I'll need to tuck _this_ beauty away someplace safe," Mage indicated the hidden jewel. "Have fun with KID, will you? And please don't hold a grudge against him after this." With that statement hanging in the air, Mage swiftly walked across the net as if it was solid ground and opened his glider, flying off with the jewel.

KID allowed a brief, toothy grin to slip past his Poker Face as he scanned the crowd. Everyone in said crowd could clearly hear the remaining thief's whistle as he finished his visual circuit. "Well, _this_ is going to be interesting." Before anyone, including Conan, could say 'Kaito KID', KID released countless numbers of smoke bombs, all of them emitting a pink smoke when they impacted the ground. KID had disappeared once the smoke had cleared. Not only that but everyone—and I mean _everyone_—was now sporting identical KID costumes, minus the monocle. And of course, 'everyone' included the many members of the Task Force, including the good inspector who was too occupied with gaping at the hoard of KIDs to take in his own appearance. Conan was also included in the sudden costume party, his guardian finding herself in a similar situation. Conan gritted his teeth as three words flashed across his mind, 'What… The… _Hell_…?'

The heads of the very confused and excited crowd whipped around, glancing at their surroundings and at their current attire, many of the female population squealing as the prospect that _they are wearing KID costumes_ sunk in. Nakamori angrily threw his KID hat down and frantically searched the crowd trying to look for the _real_ KID but only laying eyes on _many_ fake KIDs. "How did he even…?" Ran mumbled, looking over her attire.

Conan looked briefly up at Ran before catching sight of a white figure jumping off the roof of one of the buildings on the block. 'KID,' Conan growled, heading over to the building, 'It's gotta be.'

Conan maneuvered himself to a cleared area by the building and bent down to adjust his shoes to the correct setting. Popping out a soccer ball from his belt, Conan quickly tossed the ball up and kicked the black and white sphere towards KID. Seconds before the ball would have impacted with the thief, said thief veered sharply to the left, avoiding the ball before setting himself back on course and flying away; Nakamori's cussing filling the air.

**Final Notes: And that concludes this chapter and the Aibou Arc (a title I came up with halfway through the timeframe of said arc). Up next is chapter seven and the start of the Pandora Arc. Also starting next chapter will be quotes at the beginning of each chapter (or the end if I'm feeling spontaneous). Most of them will NOT be from people you all know of (unless you go to my school) Why? Because—as mentioned in the parentheses—they will be from people at my school. They may make you smile, or scoff, or giggle, or they may leave you wondering 'Why in the world are these classmates of Azarath so weird?' (Though I'm aiming more on the smile or giggle end of the spectrum… I already know my friends/classmates are weird (we all are))**

**And because I have a snippet of the next chapter already typed up .**_** Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Are you afraid, Tantei-kun? The only thing I'd be afraid of is that detective with a gun. Clueless little fellow, coulda seriously hurt someone."**_

**And just for kicks (and to give you a sneak peak at the craziness aforementioned quotes may be): "Remember kids, boil your Jesus and only drink bottled mercury!"—Sci-Fi Fantasy Club Mad Lib**


	9. Amber Orange (7)

**A/N: Well, well, here's the start of a new chapter in our good friends' lives (otherwise known as the Pandora Arc)**

**Warnings: Blown out ears and excessive ranting**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan for Beta-ing my story! :D As well as DCMonkey4EVR for simply reading it. Love ya's!**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): When reading my story just remember: Sometimes the smallest, seemingly minor details turn out to possess a much larger role in the future. (With that in mind… read on!)**

**And today's quote is: "Nothing's illegal if you don't get caught!" –Papilio

* * *

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Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Amber Orange

* * *

Ekoda, Japan

Ekoda High School

September 1, 7:49 AM

"Found something interesting in the paper again, Kuroba?" a slightly accented voice remarked neutrally to the teenage magician.

Two violet-blue eyes peeked out from behind the morning's paper to stare back at a pair of golden-brown eyes. Suddenly the paper was slammed down onto the desk, completely forgotten. Kaito jumped up and patted the speaker's back, "Why hello to you too! You finally made it back I see! Did you sneak away from your parents to catch up with me, Hakuba? I'm so touched!"

Hakuba scoffed and swatted Kaito's hand away, "Like I'd really need to catch up with you. You've probably been pulling pranks all year… as usual." Hakuba fell silent as he realized what the reminder could produce.

"Hey! Thanks for the reminder~! You know me too well."

Hakuba groaned and took several steps back only to run into another figure. The blonde teenager muttered a soft, "Nakamori-san…" before the girl moved around him to glare at, "_Kaiiitoooo!_ Leave Hakuba-san alone!"

"Fine, fine," Kaito shrugged, "Only because you asked~!" Aoko suddenly felt a gust of wind and she turned furiously, looking for the young prankster that was _supposed_ to be right next to her. "Red? Isn't that a little bold for you? Who knew you had it in you?"

"_Kurooobaaaa Kaiiitoooo_!" Nakamori Aoko bellowed, finding her beloved weapon—the classroom mop— and beginning the daily mop chase.

Hakuba and many of the fighting duo's classmates let their heads fall into their hands, everyone thinking the same thing, 'Here we go again.'

Hakuba moved his hand away from his face and his eyes fell on the discarded newspaper on Kaito's desk. Turning the paper to face him, the high-school detective began reading the article on the front page, a frown growing as he read farther in. He looked up, searching the classroom for the current position of the magician, which was latched onto the ceiling in the far corner of the room. Deciding against yelling across the room, Hakuba settled on mumbling to himself, "What is all _this_ about?"

"The squab has found a friend with a common interest. Together, the two of them will search for and capture the red tear. And together, the doves will team up with four hawks and battle the crows." In fluttered the voice of one Koizumi Akako, the neighborhood witch, not that Hakuba _knew_ that fact.

"Koizumi-san…?"

The teen smirked, flicking away her dark red hair and glancing at the paper with her dark violet-red eyes. "Are you jealous that Mage-san didn't inform you of his or her move to Japan? I'm sure you would have followed if you knew."

"Oh? Is that true? You're acquainted with Masked Mage? Do you have a fetish for Phantom Thieves?" Kaito asked as he launched himself off a nearby desk to attach himself to the patch of ceiling by his own desk.

"Watch where you're going Kaito!" Aoko yelled as she swung, nearly clipping Kaito's head as the teen laughed and moved to another spot near the detective.

Hakuba smirked, "My experience with Mage helped me greatly when KID suddenly reappeared after eight years, seeing how those two are fairly similar. Did you get far enough into the article to see if the riddle for the next heist was displayed?"

"It's at the end of the article," Kaito remarked nonchalantly, dodging another swipe from Aoko's mop.

Hakuba promptly flipped to the third page of the paper where the last half of the article was and read the note once before smirking and pulling out a small laptop from his book bag and pulling up the Internet. "Oi, oi," Kaito drawled as he cowered behind the detective, knowing Aoko wouldn't swing with Hakuba in the proximity. "Don't tell me you've solved it already?"

The detective shrugged, "I've grown used to Mage's style so I picked it up easily enough…" Hakuba glanced briefly at Kaito before regarding Aoko, "Nakamori-san… would you put away the mop if you hit Kuroba once?" He saw the girl nod tersely, "Good," Hakuba latched onto Kaito's arm, "Go ahead."

"W-wait, Hakuba! Oww!" Kaito rubbed his injured head, "_Aokoo_ that hurt!"

"Good!" Aoko exclaimed before disposing of the mop, satisfied with her attack.

Hakuba grabbed Aoko's attention when he said, "Nakamori-san, are you going to see your father after school?"

Aoko nodded, "I was going to give Otou-san his dinner since he'll probably be at the station later than usual. Why do you ask, Hakuba-san?"

"Do you mind if I accompany you, then?"

"Iie, that's fine." Aoko answered. Hakuba nodded to himself before putting his computer away right as the teacher entered, ready to begin class.

* * *

Ekoda, Japan

Police Headquarters-Division Two

September 1, 3:37 PM

As the group from Ekoda High entered the station, the three of them, Kaito, Aoko, and Hakuba, headed to the floor where Division Two was situated, using the elevator to transport them. However, when they exited the elevator, they paused—rather, _Hakuba_ paused, Kaito and Aoko only doing the same because they were behind the detective. In front of the three Ekoda students, were three figures, one sitting patiently in a chair by the door to Nakamori's office, one leaning against the doorframe leading to the Task Force leader's office, and one peering curiously into the office from around the figure against the door. "K-k-kasuma?"

Kasuma, who was leaning against the doorframe jumped, her arms unfolding from across her chest as she looked at the speaker. She herself wore a shocked expression as she forced out, "H-hakuba…?"

Kasuma's companions, Conan and Ran, looked up then, familiarizing themselves with the faces in front of them, "Aoko-chan, Kuroba-kun?" Ran spoke next.

"Well, if it isn't Mouri-chan and Tantei-kun!" Kaito exclaimed happily, "Long time no see, ne? What are you three doing in Ekoda? It's a bit far from Beika isn't it?"

"We wanna talk to Nakamori-keibu about the heist note for the next heist!" Conan announced, "But we're waiting 'cause he's talking with one of the other officers!"

Meanwhile, after getting over her initial shock, Kasuma walked over to Hakuba, "Hisashiburida, Hakuba." Kasuma murmured, smiling weakly.

Hakuba nodded slowly, "A little over a year."

"Hakuba-niisan!" Conan exclaimed, moving over to the British detective.

"Conan-kun," Hakuba nodded, greeting his fellow detective. He looked over to Ran, "And Mouri-san."

Ran smiled warmly and then glanced between Kasuma and Hakuba, "You two know each other?"

Kasuma nodded, smiling, "We're… childhood friends. His family also graciously took me in when my… house… was rendered useless."

Hakuba opened his mouth to elaborate but what came out of his mouth were not words but instead a strangled cough as Kasuma roughly jabbed his stomach with her elbow, her eyes telling him to shut up. Hakuba's childhood friend then patted his back lightly, smiling, "I believe details are unnecessary, ne Hakuba?"

Hakuba glared at the girl but otherwise remained silent, letting the subject drop as he rubbed his now tender stomach, "Fine, fine, but did you _have_ to go _that_ far to get your point across?" the detective lowered his voice, "I know the subject is still tender but…" Kasuma jabbed him again, softer this time and Hakuba shut his mouth.

Kaito grinned, "Now I like you even more! Kasuma-chan, I think I may need you around more often."

"Because I'm the only one who can successfully injure Hakuba?" Kasuma elaborated, bending slightly in order to make eye contact with the magician. Kaito's grin widened, clearly displaying his answer.

"Sadist," Hakuba mumbled.

Smiling again, Kasuma turned back to the injured detective, "Don't make me do that again. You know I will."

The arguing duo was interrupted by Aoko stepping around Kaito and speaking up to a new figure. "Otou-san, I brought you a dinner since you're probably going to stay here late."

Nakamori Ginzo walked out of the office and looked at his daughter, "Hm? Oh, thank you Aoko." The Inspector said retrieving the basket Aoko had in her grip. Nakamori sighed, "You're right about staying late; we have no idea when KID and Mage are gonna strike next so we need to solve it fast."

Three voices spoke up in unison, "Ano… about that…"

Nakamori stopped and glared at the speakers, Conan, Kasuma, and Hakuba. "What is it?"

"We solved the note," Kasuma and Hakuba spoke up simultaneously. Kasuma plowed on, "And you have three days to get ready."

Nakamori's glare was sent full-force in Kasuma's direction, "Ohh? And how do you know that?"

"September fourth is the full moon!" Conan exclaimed. "It said it in the first line 'beneath the full moon!'"

"And to further confirm that statement is the last sentence 'Start with nine, separate in(to), remove one half,'" Hakuba continued.

"Using math, if you start with nine and divide it in half—the separate in(to) part—you've got four point five. Then remove one half and you're left with four." Kasuma followed.

"And so the heist date is the fourth of this month, when the full moon is due to show up!" Conan finished.

"And…?" Nakamori's glare never wavered, "What of the heist target? That's an important piece of information."

"The 'orange moon' is the target!" Conan exclaimed happily.

"And before you ask 'Which is?' let us continue." Kasuma said, raising her hand to stop Nakamori's rebuttal. "There are several jewels in the area that could be the target but none of them are the correct size to fit their standards…"

"But after some searching," Hakuba took over, "I found one that fit the bill: Amber Moon." The British detective started mumbling to himself, "But I don't know why they'd go after amber… it's not technically a gemstone…"

"Amber Moon is in the possession of a rich family that lives here in Ekoda; I believe it was the Kansei family…? Anyway, I tried to get a hold of them but no one answered the phone." Kasuma answered. "Maybe you would have better luck with that… one of the reasons I needed to come here… the other, of course, being the heist note."

Even though the inspector attempted to hide it, the teenagers (Conan included, naturally) could hear him mumbling under his breath about 'annoying know-it-all detective brats.' Conan caught both Kasuma and Kaito sporting identical smirks at the mumbled statement, though the two teens didn't notice his eyes on them… or they at least pretended not to. Nakamori submitted, turning to a Task Force officer and barking out an order that set the officers into motion. "And?" the inspector looked at the detectives, "Do any of you happen to know the address of this Kansei family?"

"From the station, drive past five stoplights, make a left, then a right. Pass three more stoplights, make a right. Another two stoplights and turn right again. Stop at the house with the longest driveway." Kasuma blurted out.

'Oi, oi, what about an actual address?' Conan thought, quirking an eyebrow at the teen.

"Do you have an actual _address_?" Nakamori gritted out, voicing Conan's thoughts.

"I only found it by searching 'Kansei mansion, Japan' on Google Maps… or was it Google Earth? I didn't look at the address." Kasuma shrugged as if it was the most obvious option out there. Conan's head fell into his palm.

"But you memorized the route?" Hakuba asked, incredulous.

Kasuma shrugged but didn't respond. Kaito began mumbling something about assistants while Nakamori barely forced out a request for Kasuma to show them the way. "Show you the way? By all means, I would love to do just that," Kasuma responded happily. She then turned and left the office, heading for the elevator with the other teenagers, Conan, and Nakamori following. Ten stoplights and four turns later, seven people stepped out of two cars and paused at the expansive gate separating the sidewalk from the driveway of the Kansei residence. Hakuba caught the attention of a gardener by the gate and asked, "May we speak with the Kansei family about their heirloom, the Amber Moon?"

* * *

Beika, Japan

Poirot Café

September 1, 4:26 PM

"Damn, he's got a strong pair of lungs!" Kasuma exclaimed, rubbing one of her ears. "My ear is _still_ ringing from his 'short' rant. I shouldn't have stood right next to him."

"But lungs like that come in handy during heists," Ran remarked.

Still rubbing her abused ear, Kasuma glared at Ran before sighing, "Guess so, still… why get so worked up over a public heist? And within the proximity of a child?" Kasuma spared at glance at Conan, "Even _I_ haven't heard so many profanities before… and I've been around a lot of… similar people."

"Why was Nakamori-keibu so worked up?" Conan asked childishly, even though he already knew why. "I couldn't hear what it was over his yelling."

Kasuma let out a quiet scoff and took a sip from her cup before answering, "It was because Kansei-san felt the first line also meant that KID and Mage wanted a heist literally 'beneath the full moon.' And of course, Nakamori-keibu didn't thing that was a good idea, not that I can blame him for thinking like that… It seems to make it worse if there's a larger audience than necessary… personally I think there shouldn't be an audience to begin with but not sure how KID would take that. Mage didn't seem to mind when we took away his audience, but KID loves audiences."

"He created one!" Conan exclaimed, "When he went after the Purple Nail, Jirokichi-ojisama took away his crowd and KID got everyone to break the nets blocking them and got everyone inside! Nakamori-keibu and Jirokichi-ojisama got _really_ annoyed and they were forced to let TV cameras film and they couldn't get the people out of the enclosed space. But," Conan paused, finger on his chin as he pondered, "I guess KID would have trouble if people didn't know about the heist beforehand… and if there was no one around the jewel and if the jewel was under a_ real_ tough security system, then he'd be caught really fast."

Kasuma winced, rubbing her ear again. "Damn these sensitive ears.." she muttered quietly.

"Um… I'm sorry for inquiring but… why did you move in with the Hakubas? I heard Hakuba-san mumbling something about it, but what happened?" Ran asked, her voice soft.

Kasuma froze before leaning back in her seat and lowering her head, her bangs hiding her eyes. She started off so quietly, Conan and Ran could barely hear her, "…They said it was an accident… Claimed some idiot's cigarette wasn't out all the way," Conan could see a small, sad smirk appear on Kasuma's face, "Can't blame 'em though, they didn't find anything else useful… it was all destroyed. Besides," Kasuma's voice lowered even more, "_that person_ doesn't smoke… there'd be no reason for a cigarette to be there."

'_That person_…?' Conan recalled, looking up at Kasuma.

Suddenly, she was smiling again, "That's in the past… and if it didn't happen, I'd still be in America and wouldn't have been able to get my old house back.. Or met up with Hakuba again."

Conan's attention was brought to another strange point, "Why is Hakuba-niisan on a first name basis with you but you're not on a first name basis with him?"

The teen laughed briefly, "Habit. But I first thought 'Hakuba' _was_ his first name. We didn't understand each other when we first met and he introduced himself as 'Saguru Hakuba.' You can imagine how I came to that conclusion since I was brought up in Japan." Kasuma smirked again, slightly nostalgic this time, "And I told him, and I quote, 'Saguru sounds weird.'"

Ran paused, thinking. Suddenly she snickered, "It _does_ sound a little weird!"

"Deshou, deshou? Just don't say that to his face, he'll get so embarrassed."

"Ah, you mentioned your house earlier.." Ran responded, switching topics, "What did you mean?"

"The house I'm in now is the same house I used to live in before my family and I moved to America. I just had to change the nameplate." Kasuma shrugged.

"So… where did you go to school? Definitely not Teitan Elementary, I would have remembered you," Ran questioned, Conan thinking the exact same thing.

"Here in Beika… Beika Elementary."

"Oh, well I guess that's why." Ran chuckled, "I still can't get over the fact that you lived so close to us yet we'd never met prior to your return to Japan. Especially Shinichi… he's only a few blocks away from you."

Kasuma scoffed, her bangs shading her eyes again, "Call it a… sheltered life." Her voice lowered and she added almost silently, "_Very_ sheltered life."

Kasuma began looking around the café, searching for something. "Hm, probably should get back… our teachers are relentless with the amount of homework they give us."

Ran dropped her head on the table, the reminder sinking in, "Ugh, I completely forgot! I'll need to get started on that. And Conan-kun, you have homework to do too, don't you?"

Conan nodded as Kasuma slipped out of the booth they had occupied. "I also need to stop by Agasa-hakase's house to finish moving some equipment to my place. Ja," she waved and left the café.

* * *

Internet

Video Chat via Web Cam

September 1, 5:52 PM

"…Yeah, I stopped by the Kansei mansion to stake things out. But it turns out that won't be necessary." A calm, neutral voice answered as the figure in a black cap shuffled around the expansive room they were in.

"You were there?" the person on the receiving end asked, "Did you happen to see my dove stop by? I sent Aizu over there around two thirty."

"Aizu…?" the black capped figure began, "I think you introduced me to her.. Didn't she have brown patches on her wings?"

"That's the one." A grin appeared, "But you forget aibou, I also introduced you to Mai, Ren'ai, and Sora."

"And Kurai, Doki, Fuku, Hato, and Taki. I swear to god, Kaito you have a dove for every letter of the Roman alphabet!"

"Tsk, tsk…" KID admonished, "Twenty-six birds is far too low a number… and at the moment, it's _Kaitou_."

Mage rolled his eyes, the hat obscuring most of the action, "Hai, hai, Kait_ou_… Anyway," Mage grabbed a stack of papers and began shifting through them. "Kansei-san is planning to make this heist a public one. He took our first line literally… from what I heard.. I'm also assuming your dove found a similar story from wherever she was perched."

"Yeah… at least she was able to look around before I got there myself…" KID leaned back in his chair, a small stack of papers in his hand as well, "Wasn't expecting _that_ turn of events to occur… but _damn_ Hakuba solved it fast! And he _insisted_ on getting to the police station as fast as possible. Oh well, it worked either way, now I don't have to have Jii-chan or myself stake the place out… well it doesn't matter now but…" KID trailed off, shrugging.

"Hmm, I _thought_ I saw Holmes there… thought he'd still be in Europe." Mage grabbed a pen and began jotting notes down on the stack of papers in his hand. "That may cause problems… especially because it's a heist out in the open."

"I'll laugh if he actually succeeds," KID grinned, suppressing a laugh.

Mage sent a glare to KID, "You're lucky I'm not in the same room as you right about now." KID's grin widened, and he gave up trying to hold his laughter back.

"If you do that on heist night, Nakamori-keibu will find your body half-dead and floating in the Sumida River…" Mage threatened, his glare intensifying.

KID's laughter was suddenly nervous and he held up his hands in defense. "Relax, if Hakuba was pitted against me like that..." KID trailed off before smirking and following up with, "Well, I'd exact my revenge _somehow_ so I'd be perfectly okay if he happened to do that every once in a while. Gives me a reason to pull pranks on him."

"Maybe I'll suggest that to him… he just might take up your offer." Mage replied with a smirk of his own. "Attacking Kaitou KID in _that_ manner might relieve some of that pent up anger he feels towards you."

"Anger…? Why anger?" KID directed a finger to his chest, "To _this_ thief? I can't see why that would be."

Mage chuckled and set the papers aside, instead heading towards a medium sized cardboard box. "Oh, that reminds me," KID started, looking at the box Mage was headed for, "Did you get the suits I sent you?"

"Yeah," Mage answered, opening the box, "They're in this exact box." Several pairs of white suits and pants were pulled and Mage inspected one of them, feeling around the fabric, "I got 'em today but didn't get a chance to open it. You said you'd send five or six over, right?" Mage saw KID nod out of the corner of his eye. "Well then, they all look accounted for. They'll be a little loose," Mage continued, holding the suit against his chest, "But that's easily manageable."

"You're good with dress shirts right?" KID asked, "I know you only said to send over the jacket and pants but there's also a few blue dress shirts in there… I guess you could use them to find a similar design and color."

"I think I already have some…" Mage picked up the blue shirt, staring at the tag "Looks like we use the same brand… that's convenient. Calvin Klein is what I usually use for these so…" Mage didn't bother finishing. Instead, he jumped up and grabbed a sheet of paper that had been briefly discarded, "Look at this." Mage held the paper up to the camera, waiting for KID to respond.

KID's first reaction was the widening of his eyes, the second was the undeniable, uncharacteristic squeak that exited his opened mouth. After several attempts to speak, KID was finally able to choke out, "How… did you…_ what's the website_?"

Mage chuckled before swiftly giving the other thief the URL. With the site now open, KID once again openly gaped at the images and description of the item of interest, "This _HAS_ to be our next target." He managed to say after intently reading everything on the webpage.

Mage chuckled again, "That was my initial reaction. It's been around enough to fit the bill we have for it. But since it recently arrived in Japan, I'm sure _They've_ noticed it too…"

"_They'll_ be after it too," KID said, finishing Mage's thought. "Then we need to make sure this is public... We'll force _Them_ out into the open."

"But we also give _Them_ a very good hiding spot… and that will make it harder for Nakamori-keibu to find _Them_. There are casualties on both sides," Mage pointed out, waggling a finger in the camera.

"Pfft," KID shrugged, "We can deal with those later… what's important is getting those bastards behind bars, for good."

* * *

Ekoda, Japan

Streets of Ekoda

September 4, 8:47 PM

"Well that was nice," Ran commented, slipping a plastic bag around her wrist as they approached the large crowd of spectators, "They have some pretty good stores here."

"If they have 'pretty good stores' then you should have gotten more," Kasuma remarked, looking over Ran's bag. "A shirt? I mean, don't get me wrong it's cute but _just_ a shirt?"

Ran laughed, "I'm not a shopaholic like you or Sonoko. A shirt is plenty… And it's not like you can talk, you didn't get anything... which seems a little strange."

"Oh I'll be getting something; I just need to be by myself to get it." Kasuma winked mischievously, "Even Conan-kun saw something he liked, ne Conan-kun?"

"E-eh?" Conan stuttered, "What are you talking about?"

"Come on now, I saw what you were so entranced with," Kasuma gently teased the boy, "And I have to admit, I agree with you. Very good choice."

Conan stuttered again while his mind tried to pick out the 'something' Kasuma was hinting at. 'The only thing I _really_ looked at was… Oh kami, she _saw_ that? Then, is the 'something' she's gonna buy that—? Oh crap.'

"Oh, now look what you've done! You've scared Conan-kun!" Ran chided as she caught Conan's blushing but slightly terrified face. Terrified not of the idea of _buying_ the little something but because of the thought of what Kasuma might _do_ with it.

"Well, _this_ certainly looks different than all the other times," Kasuma mumbled just then. Conan had to agree. It was similar to a Jirokichi-styled challenge but without the helicopters and countless numbers of TV cameras from several stations. Well, there was one camera sitting at the edge of a nearby building. The crowd, though smaller was still expansive, filling up most of the block. From the sound of it, Nakamori was in the center of the crowd, barking orders at the top of his lungs. The slim figure of Kansei Aiko, age twenty-one, stood next to him, silently scanning the crowd. Aiko was the only member of the Kansei family who decided to attend, her parents staying at home with her younger brother and sister. The college student waited patiently as the sun slowly began to set, shoulder-length black hair blowing in her face.

"I expected Hakuba to be here..." Kasuma mumbled, scanning the crowd, "Don't see him anywhere."

Conan only half-listened to what the girls were chatting about as his eyes roamed the area, surveying the location. The first chance Conan got, he slipped away from his guardians and snuck his way into a nearby building with the intent of climbing to the roof (and he didn't even have to use his wristwatch). There he could give himself a bird's eye view of the area. To the teen-turned-child's surprise, it didn't take long for a commotion to start up. Only five minutes or so after Conan reached the roof did the thieves make their move. The outskirts of the crowd was engulfed in a cloud of green smoke. The spectators all covered their noses and moved away from the smoke which, incidentally, led them towards the middle of the circle where the jewel was. Conan chuckled bitterly to himself, 'I guess their saying 'No one gets hurt' doesn't apply to sense of smell.' Conan paused, '… Wait… then that means that—Oh shit.'

Conan gripped the rooftop railing and glared down into the center of the crowd, which was desperately trying to inch away from the repulsive smell emanating from the green smoke cloud. Conan could swear he saw a flash of light from the jewel case's stand but it disappeared underneath the large mass of people. 'Damnit,' Conan cursed, 'Now it's easy picking for those thieves.' As if on cue, there was a multitude of exclamations as the guards that had been placed around the heirloom realized that, "Amber Moon is gone!"

The next minuet went by slowly. Conan caught sight of two figures in black rapidly racing up the side of the building opposite him. Black fabric was discarded and the thieves, both bearing identical white suits, jumped off the aforementioned building. Hang gliders were snapped open and, as the two criminals were about to pass over Conan, a gunshot rang out although, from Conan's position, he could clearly see _three _bullets whizzing by. Two missed their targets but one hit, ripping through one of Mage's wings. KID had swerved away, narrowly missing the bullet aimed at him and disappearing behind a few buildings. Mage on the other hand, lost control of his glider and crashed right onto the building Conan was on. The crowd below began murmuring their worries loudly as Conan approached the fallen thief.

"Tsk, why does my mask keep cracking?" Mage mumbled, grabbing the mask and breaking off the cracked area.

"Um," a quiet, slightly timid voice said, "Are you all right?"

Mage froze, "Are you afraid, Tantei-kun? You really shouldn't be. The only thing I'd be afraid of is that high-school detective with a gun. Clueless little fellow, coulda seriously hurt someone." Mage began mumbling.

The wings were collapsed and Mage stood up slowly, as if not to trigger any sudden reaction from the shrunken detective. 'This is dangerous,' Mage thought, 'Keeping my back towards the enemy.'

There was a faint sound down below and, as time passed, both forms on the roof could clearly hear it. Mage climbed over the rail surrounding the rooftop and looked down at the anxious, murmuring crowd. Mage looked at Conan with bright, golden eyes. "Here's a little souvenir Tantei-kun." He chucked a small item to the boy who caught it easily. "Mage! Dive, dive now!" a voice yelled as its owner rounded the corner of a nearby building.

'Shit,' Conan thought as he turned on his sneakers and inflated a soccer ball.

Mage complied and kicked off the railing, diving down to where KID's hang glider was headed. KID caught up easily and grabbed Mage as their escape was made. The soccer ball in Conan's hand deflated and he sighed, turning the dial on his sneakers off. 'Now we're even, Double-M.'

* * *

Internet

Video Chat via Web Cam

September 4, 10:48 PM

"Damn. I shoulda known Holmes'd hide his presence," Mage exclaimed as he turned his back to the camera and removed the ruined mask to replace it with a black cap. The thief suddenly whirled to face the camera, "You better not start laughing," he threatened, "You know I'll only have to exact my revenge on you."

"I'm not laughing!" KID defended, "I'm happy he got you but not for that reason. 'Cause he shot and actually hit you, you avoided a bullet to the heart."

"And Hakuba's gun startled _you_ enough to swerve, which led to _you_ missing the bullet. It would have been much worse if you took that shot, you didn't put Amber Moon into your breast pocket."

KID crossed his arms childishly, "Well neither did you!"

KID vaguely saw Mage roll his eyes, "The worst I would have gotten would have been a big bruise and a ruined suit… not that this suit here is clean in any way." Mage frowned, slapping some dust and dirt off the white garment, "I wear Kevlar underneath my dress shirt… Protects from.. well you know what it protects against."

"Do I ever," KID exclaimed. "Oh, I'm about to send the new riddle to Nakamori-keibu and Mouri-tantei, are there any changes that need to be added?"

"Actually, I think there is," Mage paused, "Add this to the beginning…"

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

September 5, 6:39 AM

"'The unlucky number adds to the return. When placed along the road the Box's treasure will be snatched and the Greeks will cringe in fright. Set your alarms for four in the morn. KID and Mage,' is what is says but what the heck does it even mean?" Ran asked, as she handed the note over to her uniform-clad companion.

Kasuma frowned, "I get the 'four in the morn' part but I'm not sure what the first part is saying." Kasuma snuck a glance to Conan who was lounging quietly on the couch, Haibara sitting next to him. She turned back to Ran, "I believe there's more math involved, if the sentence about adding says anything but I can't remember what 'the unlucky number' is. I feel like I should know this but… right now I'm comin' up blank."

"Well, we can think about that later," Ran shrugged, "Now we have to go. Ayumi and the others are probably going to meet us at that crosswalk a few blocks down soon. Conan-kun, Ai-chan, let's go."

The two teenagers and two faux children promptly left the detective agency with the intent of making their way to school.

* * *

**Final Notes: Well that concludes this chapter… What did I say… I made the chapter shorter! ****(Actually it's a lot shorter than usual... almost half the size...) ****Meaning a faster update! Yay!**

**Now may our detectives in the crowd please step forward and assist us in solving the heist note? Some hints have already been dropped by our willing assistants, we just need some brave souls to come up and piece them together. Anyone?**

**. **_**Coming up in the next episode (or chapter if you want to be literal) of Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "But just because the name and supposed color are the same, doesn't mean it's the right one."**_


	10. Ruby Red (8)

**A/N: Well hello~! Its part two of the Pandora Arc (two down… several more to go)! Don't have much to say so… Enjoy!**

**Warnings: Super sneakyness**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan—for Beta-ing of course!**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): Well looks like another faster update… maybe a lil' over a week? Maybe two? Sweet.**

**Today's quote (actually it's more of a brief conversation): "What does it say about education when only one of the three R's starts with 'R'?" –Flamma**

"**Hey, if you rearrange the letters, it spells 'war'!" –Imber**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Ruby Red

* * *

Beika, Japan

Unknown

September 9, 11:49 PM

A door opened slowly and quietly, wishing to make as little noise as possible. A stealthy figure opened the door all the way when they were sure no one would be aroused by the unwanted creak of this door that was infamous for just that. With no need for a light source, the figure headed down the stairs carefully. Even though the layout was straight forward enough, it never hurt to be careful. There was no need to make any excessive noise now was there? Finally at the foot of the stairs, the figure took a look around, their eyes already adjusted to the very dim lighting in the lab, because that's just what it was: a lab. Microscopes of various kinds lay scattered around, petri dishes of all sizes sitting nearby. The figure moved towards the computer in the room briefly pausing to scan a test tube rack. The rack was completely filled with, well, test tubes, each one of them numbered from one to ten with the words 'Blood Sample' written next to it in very neat kanji. The figure smirked to themself then moved on, picking up a folder that happened to be on the table as they went. Expertly, the figure turned on the monitor, the light illuminating the 'intruder's' face, blue eyes staring intently at the screen. The main screen popped up and the figure grinned thinking, 'A password, eh? Well, this should be simple enough.'

Cracking their knuckles, the figure set to work, typing in several combos. After the third try, the device accepted the secret code and the figure was granted access. Several files opened, blue eyes rapidly reading and memorizing the text flying by. 'Photographic memory works wonders,' the eyes' owner thought, smirking. 'Hm, I haven't seen these terms in a while… Let's see… We have a detailed description of Apoptosis, and a list of several biomolecules. There's citric acid, collagen, cytosine, formaldehyde, histamine, hyaluronidase, kinase, penicillin, secretin, valine, vanabins, and the list just goes on and on. Jesus, you've been busy haven't you?'

The intruder could vaguely hear movement on the first floor. Someone was moving around. And from the intruder's information, the sleeping quarters were on the second floor. There shouldn't have been anyone up at this time. It was nearing midnight on a school night. Surely the occupants would be preparing themselves for the school day by retreating to their rooms. 'Looks like I'll have to head out soon. That's a bummer.'

The door to the lab was opened, the intruder could tell from the bright light that permeated from the hallway. Light footsteps could be heard plodding down the stairs. The figure smirked, 'I guess a short conversation wouldn't hurt.'

* * *

Beika, Japan

Teitan Elementary

September 10, 2:27 PM

"_So you're Sherry, huh? Kudo-kun's scientist friend? Nice to finally meet you."_

The voice rang endlessly in her mind, the practically one-sided conversation replaying over and over again. She looked up briefly, recording the sad excuse for a math problem in her notebook, trying for once to make it seem as if she was paying attention in class. She wasn't of course, but could anyone blame her? Hearing that dreaded name spoken through practically unfamiliar tones shook her up more than she thought it should. Oh how she wished she hadn't gotten paranoid and curious. Heading down to the lab at that time was the worst choice she'd made.

Then again, if she had stayed safely tucked in her bed, she wouldn't have found out.

"_Can you keep a secret?" A scoff, "Of course you can, you've been doing just that for a while haven't you? This computer right here proves that fairly easily," a finger jabbed at aforementioned computer. "Well, Sherry, have you heard of the two Traitors of the Organization?"_

Yes, Traitors—as in capital 'T'— of course she'd heard of them, who hadn't? Everyone was warned, told the story, no matter how vague it was, of the two Traitors. She had nodded her head at the time, suddenly thinking after the action that the speaker probably couldn't see it. Well, the speaker did and continued.

"_So you know of them? 'The two who must not be named' to reference that popular series of books and movies. Do you also know of their codenames, Montrose and Merlot? Well you probably haven't as they are 'the two who must not be named.' Regardless, you must know of their destruction."_

She recalled thinking why this information was being mentioned. It didn't have any significance did it? She had caught someone snooping around her lab and the intruder threw out the topic of Montrose and Merlot? 'Where was this going?' she had asked herself.

I repeat, _everyone_ knew of Montrose and Merlot. It was used as an example to stop any and all thoughts of betrayal in the Organization. She had been too young so she had not directly heard of their destruction, but her sister, with her monthly letters, had included a series of invisible ink messages, many of them talking about how the Traitors had defied the Organization. 'She looked up to them, in a sense. The first two people who betrayed the Organization, the bravest of us all.'

"_Then did you know Montrose and Merlot had two children?"_

That question had made her blood run cold. Children? She didn't know, she didn't think anyone did, except the deceased parents and the children themselves. Why was she being told this? Did the speaker want her to know about the children? But why? That simple question was running through her head throughout the whole conversation.

"_They were kinda like you. You and your onee-san. The two of them were wanted in Their ranks, for their intellectual prowess."_

She had interrupted the speaker.

"_Why are you telling me this?"_

The speaker had answered the question, or was going to… before they got distracted.

"_One moved on. The other became a—"_

That was when the speaker stopped, a noise unheard of by her catching the ears of the intruder. The dark figure had scribbled something down on a sheet of paper and slipped the sheet into her hand, avoiding any physical contact. The last thing the person had said was…

"_The name of the one who didn't move on is on that sheet of paper. The person is very reliable and could help you. The person knows how to keep a secret as well."_

"Ai-chan! Ai-chan!" A female voice shook her from her musings. Haibara looked up from her notebook, surprised to find the school day over. Ayumi stood next to her, a worried expression painting her face. Genta and Mitsuhiko stood behind her, Mitsuhiko looking far more worried than the other males in their group. And the last male, Conan, was giving Haibara a strange look, as if he was trying to mentally draw her previous thoughts out into the open. Haibara gave a small smirk, "Sorry, I was zoning out."

The three real kids ran out of the classroom, Conan and Haibara following at a slower pace. "So what were you so focused on that you couldn't hear the dismissing bell?" Conan glanced at her through the corner of his eye.

Haibara's hand accidently brushed against her pant pocket and she could feel the small piece of white paper inside, a reminder of just _why_ Haibara wasn't paying any attention to class, not that she did anyway. 'Whoever that was wanted me to confide in… But I don't think I can do that. It would just put me in more danger, even if I could get help from that person. The more people that know of Kudo-kun and my situation, the more in danger we are. I'm not risking that. If something goes wrong…' Haibara caught a brief glimpse of the three kids as they turned the corner, 'They'll pay for our mistake. As will everyone else around us… Then again, last night's intruder said the person could keep a secret. And they already have a connection to the Black Organization and they seem to be greatly opposed to _Them_ just like Kudo-kun and I. For sure, they'd know of the dangers of revealing themselves or letting their secret loose. But still—'

"Oi! Haibara! Are you even listening to me?" Conan's voice rang out again.

"I heard you, Edogawa-kun." Haibara replied, deadpan. "And what I was pondering doesn't concern you until I choose to make it. There's no need to know right now."

'Oi, oi,' Conan thought as he slipped on his shoes, 'Bad mood are we?'

Just when Conan was about to respond, a triad of voices met his ears. "W-well, they were well tailored a-and I-I couldn't bring myself to throw them out. I mean _they were nicely made_!" Conan looked up at Ran and saw a light blush staining her cheeks.

Kasuma placed her hands on Ran's shoulders, "Whoa, girl. You're babbling." Kasuma turned her body one hundred and eighty degrees to face Sonoko, "And did you really _just_ hear of this? There were cameras everywhere filming."

"This is the first time I heard you kept the suits!" Sonoko defended herself. Sonoko stopped walking and crossed her arms, glaring at the girl who was walking backwards, "And what about you? This is the first time you've heard of them as well."

Kasuma shook her head, "Da-ka-ra. There were several cameras filming. The first day or two after the heist, the mall was playing the heist over and over again."

"K-Kasuma… watch ou—" Ran began to say but before her sentence could finish, Kasuma leapt up into the air and flipped over the Shonen Tantei, who had been awaiting the teenagers' arrival. Landing lightly on her two feet, Kasuma regarded Ran.

"I heard them coming. No need to worry, Ran-san."

Sonoko was not impressed, "Show off," she muttered.

Kasuma pointedly ignored her and turned to the kids, "Hey, guys. Shall we head home?"

Three of the five children nodded enthusiastically, the same three running ahead of Ran and Sonoko who had been in the front of the group. Kasuma fell in step behind the two teens, her book bag slung carelessly over her shoulder, finger fiddling with the bag's buckle. The remaining two children, the two shrunken teenagers, took up the rear, "What's up with you today, Haibara? You were extremely inattentive in class, I mean more so than usual." Conan asked the girl, unaware of the ears that were focused entirely on them.

"Nothing's up. I was just doing a lot of thinking." Haibara responded, eyes on the ground the entire time.

"Usotsuki," the boy accused. "There _is_ something up, why won't you tell me?"

'Damn detective,' she thought, slightly fond, 'I can't go to him, not right now. He'd immediately try to talk me out of it, just like what I've been doing to him… Ironic, if I go through with it, _I'll_ be the one breaking the rules first, not Kudo-kun.'

"Oi, Haibara! You're doing it again." Conan waved a hand in front of her face.

Haibara glared at her fellow shrunken teen, 'He's not gonna let up. I guess it wouldn't hurt to give him _some_ of the information.' Haibara sighed and spoke in nearly a whisper, "Last night someone found their way into the lab. I don't know what they were doing but… when I walked in, they started talking about two of the biggest traitors of the Organization."

"The lab… in Kasuma's house?" Conan asked lamely.

"Where else?" Haibara retorted.

"Okay, okay, I get it. Now what about these traitors? I thought you were the only one."

Haibara shook her head. "I was the first one in five years, they were the first. The Organization always tells new recruits the story of those traitors, except they leave out their codenames."

"So what's the story of these traitors?" Conan inquired.

"The story… is usually told by Vermouth." Conan flinched at the name.

_The woman leaned lazily against the side of the table, her cold eyes focused on the only occupant in the room. That famous cold smile snaked over her features, causing the occupant to fiddle nervously with her new white lab coat. "I'm sure you've heard this before from your sister haven't you… Sherry." Shiho didn't respond and the woman shrugged, continuing her task, "Anyway, twenty years ago, our organization had two of the greatest scientists, their names will remain unsaid. Anokata doesn't want anyone looking into them. I know you know of Waykamatayan. At that time, maybe a few years earlier, Waykamatayan found an item of interest to Anokata and they handed it over to me. I, in turn, gave it to the Traitors with an order from Anokata to duplicate the item. They had accepted easily enough and immediately compiled a staff to work on it. For years, they tried to accomplish the task they had been given but one of them… he got fed up with the project and destroyed everything and fled the country with the other traitor. Now, you may wonder: why tell me this? Those two, combined, had enough contacts and friends in high places to defile our group. They had to be taken care of before they did anything harmful against us. After they fled, they lived in peace for a year before I found them hiding out in Oregon… of the United States… I'm sure you know of Oregon since you were studying in America. Oops, I diverged… anyway, the point is… Betraying the organization means death, always remember that Sherry. We wouldn't want to lose _another_ talented scientist such as yourself."_

"_Why are their names forbidden to be spoken?" Shiho asked out of pure curiosity._

_Vermouth's small, cold smile vanished, "Their names? Well, they bring bittersweet memories for many of the older members. And I'll be the first to admit that I'm one of them, Pisco can also attest _and _agree to that." Vermouth strode towards the door, "And always remember what I said. We have a 'no tolerance' policy here."_

"'Way-kama-ta-yan…'? What the hell is that?" was what exited Conan's mouth first.

Haibara shrugged, "I don't know. Vermouth just assumed I knew but I didn't… I _still_ don't."

"…Waykamatayan… that's definitely not Japanese. And it's certainly not English. It must be from _one_ of the languages out there…" Conan mumbled.

"Well, I can't be of any help there… maybe Kasuma knows what language it is… she's fluent in tons of them," Haibara suggested.

"And you know this how?" Conan quirked an eyebrow at the girl.

Haibara shrugged, "The books in her library… There are books in Japanese, English, Greek, Russian, French, Spanish, German, Arabic, hell, she even has some _Latin_ books in there… and that's a _dead_ language. I wouldn't be surprised if I found an Aramaic book in there." Haibara paused, "Oh, I almost forgot. The intruder said something strange before they left."

"What was that?" Conan asked her.

"Their exact words were, 'So you're Sherry, huh? Kudo-kun's scientist friend? Nice to finally meet you.' You could probably deduce who it was since they mentioned you."

Conan was silent for a while before, suddenly, a memory of a roof-top encounter flashed through his mind. "Mage!" Conan had a very hard time keeping his voice at a whispering level. Conan lowered his voice even more, "That's what he called you when he helped me as I was changing back into Conan. Said it'd be more fun with 'Kudo Shinichi' around and that you should find the antidote quickly."

"He knows of your situation? What did you do to confirm that for him?" Haibara demanded, also having trouble with her voice's volume.

"Nothing!" Conan defended, "I don't know how he found out… he just did! Maybe KID said something. He's known about me for a while, even helped save my ass a few times."

"And speaking of KID and Mage," a voice interrupted, startling the two shrunken teens, "That note needs to be solved doesn't it? I haven't spoken with Hakuba yet about it but Nakamori-keibu doesn't seem to know when the next heist is."

Kasuma kept her voice quiet, so as not to attract Sonoko's rapt attention in the direction of the current topic. The teen aligned herself with the two faux children and bent over so her quiet voice could reach them and only them. However, Conan and Haibara hadn't seemed to recover from their first initial shock over her statement, both pairs of eyes wide with shock and, quite possibly, fear. "K-kasuma…nee…chan… you were listening? To our conversation?"

"Not really. I was just spacing out and when I heard Mage and then KID whispered behind me, I was reminded of the heist note." Kasuma glanced at Conan, then looked at Haibara, "Ai-chan, why do you keep staring at me? I've noticed you doing that at random periods during the day… especially on the walks to and from school. I don't do anything _that_ interesting, do I?"

Haibara shook her head, "So you weren't listening to our conversation?"

Kasuma shook her head, "Conversations are between the conversers. And even if I did…" Kasuma held a finger against her mouth and smiled, "I know how to keep a secret."

Haibara froze.

"_The person knows how to keep a secret as well."_

'Damn thief,' Haibara glared daggers at the pavement, cursing the thief that had found his way into her lab. 'How did he even _know_ of it? Damn thief,' she cursed again. Haibara moved her eyes off the ground just in time to see one Suzuki Sonoko yank on Kasuma's arm, causing the teen to let out a multitude of strange sound effects.

"Sonoko, what the heck?" she managed to say once her arm had been freed.

"Kotchi, kotchi," Sonoko directed the girl. Sonoko leaned in closer to Kasuma's ear and Conan and Haibara, who were within relative hearing range, could hear Sonoko whisper, "About that thing you mentioned earlier…" before Sonoko's voice became inaudible to the two shrunken teenagers.

Kasuma's eyes widened and she stared at Sonoko, "Maji ka yo? Hounto? You've _got_ to be kidding me! Already?" Sonoko nodded at every statement that fell out of Kasuma's mouth.

"Well shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit," Kasuma ignored the glare she was receiving from Ran at her string of repeated curses. Kasuma turned to Ran, still ignoring the glare that was in place, "Ran-san, do you mind staying with the kids for the rest of the walk?" Ran nodded mutely, a look of confusion replacing her earlier glare. "Good," Kasuma nodded, "Well then, I'm stealing Sonoko here and we'll be heading off," Kasuma lowered her voice, mainly talking to herself, "before that thing leaves for good." This time, Kasuma was the one to yank on Sonoko's arm and the two of them ran off.

"Huh… well that was weird," Ran stated bluntly. The three kids who had been walking ahead of the others back pedaled and looked up at Ran.

"Ran-oneesan? What are they doing?" Ayumi asked.

Ran shrugged, "No idea. I'm as confused as you are, Ayumi-chan." Ran then steeled herself and nodded, "Well then, we'd better get going. We're nearing your houses aren't we?" She looked at Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko. The three kids nodded and ran up ahead again.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Beika Mega Mall

September 10, 3:49 PM

"I can't _wait_ to see the look on her face when she gets this!" Sonoko squealed as she closed the lid of a simple black box and slipped in into Kasuma's bag around her wrist. "How did you even come across this? I _know_ you're not the type of person to go browsing around _this_ section of any department store," Sonoko waved her arms around to emphasize her point.

Kasuma shrugged, "I saw it when Ran-san was looking around here. It seems Conan-kun had his eyes on it as well. Not sure why but… oh well."

"The squirt? That actually caught his eye?" Sonoko asked in disbelief, "I guess he's got a pretty good taste, for a _squirt_."

Kasuma smiled, "That's for sure. And I _know_ he's not gonna like this but I just might get this engraved later on. Oh," Kasuma faced the young cashier that had assisted the two teenagers, "I _can_ come back later to get this engraved right?"

The cashier nodded, "Of course," she affirmed.

"That's good."

Sonoko started dragging Kasuma away from the counter, "What do you want to engrave on it?"

"I don't know… _yet_, that is," Kasuma paused, "I'll need to figure out how to get a hold of Shinichi-kun."

"Shinichi? Why that mystery freak?" Sonoko inquired, thoroughly confused.

"'Cause whatever I get engraved on this will have to be according to Shinichi-kun's words. After all," Kasuma winked, "That's who this'll be from."

"Oh, even better! Now I _really_ want to see her reaction," Sonoko exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

"As do I," Kasuma nodded, "But first… I'll need to find that present she hid. She _still_ hasn't opened it. I swear," Kasuma huffed, "If that present isn't opened in _three_ months, I will lock her up in an empty room with only that present to accompany her and she won't be let out until that present is opened!"

"Hopefully, you'll feed her… she might not comply for a while," Sonoko remarked.

"Oh I will," Kasuma answered, "I'm not gonna let her starve. She'd be in horrible condition when I finally track down Shinichi-kun and get those two out on a date."

"Y-you've been trying to track down Shinichi?"

"No, not really," Kasuma shrugged, "But next time he's in town, I'll make _sure_ he spends some quality time with Ran-san."

"Kasuma…?"

Kasuma turned to face the speaker, even though she already knew who it was. But she didn't get to say anything before Sonoko was on top of the new-comer, "Hey, aren't you Hakuba Saguru? That high school detective that chases KID?"

"Y-yeah. And I believe you're Suzuki Sonoko-san, from the Suzuki-zaibatsu. I believe it is your uncle who often challenges KID, correct?" Hakuba countered.

Sonoko nodded, then leaned in closer to the detective, "When you catch KID, make sure you hand him over to me first, alright?"

"Mou Sonoko!" Kasuma whined, "If anything, KID'll be turned in to the police first."

"Not if I can help it," Sonoko announced, "Oh, I just remembered, I have to meet up with someone at the other side of the mall." Sonoko headed off, "I'll see you at school!"

"Mou, you're abandoning me," Kasuma pouted briefly before facing her childhood friend, "Anyway, what brings you to Beika?"

"…I was… checking out the new mall…?"

Kasuma scoffed, "Yeah right. Usotsuki."

"Okay, fine. I wasn't checking out the new mall. I was just wandering around," Hakuba said.

"Uh huh. _Suuuure_. Let's go with that," Kasuma replied sarcastically.

Hakuba sighed, "You won't accept _any_ excuse I make, will you?"

"Probably not," Kasuma smirked briefly, "Anyway, it's a good thing you came here. That heist note _really_ needs to be solved. Otherwise Nakamori-keibu will miss his chance to catch KID and Mage… as will anyone else wanting to catch them." Kasuma sent a pointed glance at the high school detective.

"Yeah, yeah, I know… 'Phantom Thief fetish'… First you, then Kuroba. So what if I find the challenge thrilling?"

"Come on now," Kasuma patted Hakuba's shoulder, "I never said I thought you had a 'Phantom Thief fetish.'"

"But you've implied it. And that's proof enough. Anyway," Hakuba said, switching topics, "Why are _you_ at a mall. You're not much of a shopper."

"That depends on what I'm shopping _for_," Kasuma pulled out her recent purchase and opened it, showing the contents to Hakuba, "And _this_ is the reason I'm in the mall… besides my job here."

"You're working here?" Hakuba asked, peering at the object in front of him, "And that's very pretty. Special occasion?"

"Nope," Kasuma said, snapping the box closed, "Present… for Ran-san. From Shinichi-kun. Though he doesn't know of this one… _yet_."

"Trying to pull together another couple?" Hakuba sighed, shaking his head, "Talk about 'fetish.'"

"If only you'd _see_ those two. It's blindly obvious that they have feelings for each other but no one makes a move to do anything about it. And I'll be the one to make sure it's set in stone. Problem is I can't track down Shinichi-kun. He just up and disappears, any proof of his _existence_ has been wiped clean… except for his house… which is slowly gathering dust."

"I had heard he died. You _are_ talking about Kudo Shinichi right?" Kasuma nodded, "I guess the media has it all wrong."

"Apparently. I've seen him with my own two eyes. And he's definitely_ not_ dead." Kasuma placed the black box back into her bag, "Anyway… we were talking about the heist note?"

"Uh y-yeah," Hakuba pulled out his copy of the heist note and read the contents out loud, "'The unlucky number adds to the return. When placed along the road the Box's treasure will be snatched and the Greeks will cringe in fright. Set your alarms for four in the morn. KID and Mage,' The time of the heist is pretty easy to figure out…"

"'Four in the morn' Four 'o clock am," Kasuma murmured.

"Right. And I think the phrase 'placed along the road' means they want this to be a public heist. But as to what exactly 'the Box's treasure' is, I have no idea."

"'Box's treasure…' Wouldn't that be hope? You know… the Greek myth with Pandora? Or is that phrase just referring to the myth in general?"

"Pandora's Box. That's probably what it refers to," Hakuba agreed, "Pandora's box unleashed all the evils in the world so the line about the Greeks confirms that. But that first line is the strangest of them all."

"Unlucky number… that's thirteen... I just remembered. So… thirteen, adds, and return… seventeen? Maybe?" Hakuba quirked an eyebrow at the girl, "Well, the note was sent out on the fourth and if you add the unlucky number, you find the return date, the seventeenth."

"I got my copy on the fifth, not the fourth." Hakuba showed Kasuma the printed date on the sheet of fax paper.

"Huh. Odd. They must have sent out different notes at different times. Oh, maybe they wanted to show us that they'll come in between the seventeenth and eighteenth, at four in the morning. It's a possibility," Kasuma suggested.

"It's worth bringing up to Nakamori-keibu," Hakuba mused. He gave Kasuma a side-long glance, "Where are you staying?"

"Same place as before," Kasuma answered haphazardly.

"Same place? Really?"

"Yeah," Kasuma shrugged, "We never sold it to begin with. We didn't think we'd have to completely abandon it. My parents were hoping to claim it again after a few months… of course, you know how _that_ turned out."

"…Right," Hakuba diverted his attention, smacking himself mentally for bringing up the subject.

"Don't worry about it," Kasuma assured him, patting his back. "It's not that time of year yet… I'm not moping about it."

"Come on, don't joke about that. I really worry about you during those times… and you _still_ haven't broken that habit? You'll hurt yourself."

"Heiki, heiki," Kasuma replied, "It's only a smaller meal and a drink or two."

"You make it sound so natural," Hakuba glared at Kasuma. "Besides, you're under aged. You're supposed to be at least twenty in Japan. You may be the right age in the UK but certainly not in Japan and not in Oregon either."

"You're point? Wine is given out to kids much younger than me for First Communion. And the laws in Oregon state that a parental guardian can legally provide their minor child, or children, with alcohol in a private residence."

"But Japan is much stricter about alcohol."

"Fine," Kasuma pouted and crossed her arms childishly, "_Don't_ let me honor my parents in my own way. It's a very simple procedure for me, one small glass for my dad and another small glass for my mom. Mattaku, you worry too much."

* * *

Beika, Japan

Streets of Beika

September 18, 3:56 AM

Conan yawned loudly and covered his mouth with a hand, blinking back his sleepiness as he scanned the crowd. Ran, Sonoko, Kasuma, and surprisingly Aoko were somewhere behind him chatting about whatever girls chat about. The crowd, as usual, was very expansive, filling the block. Five police helicopters flew overhead, their spotlights waving over the crowd as they hovered. Nakamori, as usual, was barking orders through his radio from his typical spot in the middle of the crowd. The target, a bright red ruby by the name of Pandora, sat innocently next to the Inspector, anticipating the moment the thieves would arrive to steal it. Pandora was a large jewel that, before appearing out in the open for this heist, had rested inside Beika's main museum. It was a jewel of unknown origin that, apparently, had mysteriously appeared in Japan several decades ago. Conan made his way back to the group of teenagers and noticed Sonoko staring intently at the sky, specifically the helicopters. "Sonoko-neechan, what are you looking at?"

Sonoko sighed, still staring at the helicopters, "That helicopter looks_ really_ familiar." Sonoko pointed to one of the copters.

"Well of course, it's a police helicopter," Kasuma shrugged, "I'm sure you've seen them flying around at some point."

"No. I mean, it _looks_ like a police helicopter but… that shade of blue is slightly different than the others. I _know_ I've seen that shade of blue _somewhere_ on a copter."

Conan whipped his head up to stare at the helicopter Sonoko was still pointing at. With the assistance of his glasses, Conan zoomed in on the copter and examined the exterior carefully. 'She's right… that blue is a little different than the other ones. And is that…? Shit!' Conan ran towards the center of the circle yelling, "Nakamori-keibu! There's a fake police helicopter! The thieves are in there!"

Sure enough, just as Nakamori heard the boy and looked around for the fake helicopter, a cloud of smoke burst out from it, dispersing and spreading down into the crowd. Several more smoke bombs were set off, all of them originating from the outskirts of the crowd. Even in the panic the smoke created, Conan still found himself thinking, 'That was either set up with a trigger or one of them is in the crowd.' Because of all the smoke bombs that had been used, the natural flow of wind took longer to clear the immediate area. Therefore, when the smoke was completely gone, all the heist attendees could see Kaitou KID perched upon the pedestal in the center of the crowd, Pandora already in his hand with said hand raising the jewel up to the sky.

'Idiot!' Mage pushed through the crowd and threw a projectile at the case stand. Smoke was emitted immediately and the next thing KID knew, he was tackled to the ground. A voice hissed into his ear, "Baka na. Do you _want_ to shout to the world exactly what our goal is? You might as well have done just that. There's no way in hell _or_ Earth that we'll be able to check that thing out here in the open. I know you're anxious to see if it's the real deal, I am too, but wait until we're gone. It isn't even the right _time_ to check it. If this _is_ the Pandora we're looking for then we'll destroy it. If not, it will be returned. But just because the name and supposed color are the same, doesn't mean it's the right one."

"Where did it go?" KID mumbled.

"Calm down KID, I have it… and until we're a safe distance away, there will be no holding-gem-up-to-moon ritual. Remember your Poker Face."

KID sighed and nodded. The smoke still sent white wisps around the area but it was now clear enough for people to realize KID was not perched upon the case stand. It was also noticed that the stand wasn't upright like it should have been but lying on its side on the ground.

"If not, it will be returned. But just because the name and supposed color are the same, doesn't mean it's the right one," a voice to Conan's right hissed.

'Who in the world…?'

"Calm down KID," Conan jerked to a stop. 'KID?' The voice continued, "I have it… and until we're a safe distance away, there will be no holding-gem-up-to-moon ritual. Remember your Poker Face." Conan turned toward the voice but saw no one. Cursing internally, Conan ran towards the closest building and flew up the stairs, not even sparing the confused guards a passing glance. A few seemingly short minutes later found one chibi-fied detective on the roof running towards the two thieves who were about to escape. KID was too far away from him, so instead, Conan lunged for the other thief, arm outstretched as the thief, after a strange moment of delayed realization, bounded over the railing. Conan felt his hand graze a well-polished white shoe and said shoe slipped entirely off the thief's foot. A muttered curse was heard before the hang gliders were popped out, both gliders narrowly missing two bullets that were aimed directly at the thieves.

'Another attack!' Conan cursed as he, for the second time in a row, saw the bullets flying past him. Conan vaguely heard police sirens go off along with the whirring of the helicopter propellers as they persued the escaping thieves but he was too focused on the single white shoe that had been left behind. 'His shoe fell off…? Why would he let such a mistake occur…?'

It was as if Mage was still trying to put together his uniform as he was escaping, 'Which shouldn't have happened. A famous phantom thief known for his elaborate heists and clever tricks and riddles who forgot to secure his shoe?'

"Another sniper attack," a voice said, making the voice's owner reveal themself.

"Hakuba...niisan," Conan corrected himself, looking up at the detective.

Hakuba ran a hand through his hair furiously, "They always miss but… it's infuriating. They're both non-violent and yet, they're getting shot at. You saw the bullets, didn't you Conan-kun? You wouldn't happen to see where they landed, would you?"

"I saw them flying past _real_ fast but," Conan displayed a childish pout, "I didn't see where they went."

The high school detective next to him sighed, massaging his temples, "And they use silencers so the police haven't been tipped off by any noise. Though they _do_ know of the attacks, I made sure of that. But Sniper-san attacks at random times, and we can't track when exactly they'll strike. But I didn't think they'd strike twice in a row. I doubt KID would have been startled by my gun at the last heist, so he must have dodged a bullet from another weapon."

"You were the one that shot Mage?" Conan asked perplexed.

"I didn't _shoot_ him. I was aiming for his glider. I never aim for Mage himself, it's always his glider. By the way, since I'm sure you'd love the chance to solve this, one of them managed to slip _this _into my pocket," Hakuba withdrew a small slip of paper. "Take a look."

Conan retrieved the paper and read its contents aloud, "'The snowy stead will claim a checkmate on the second reversible double digit. Disappearance set at undecim. Kaitou KID.' No 'Mage' in the signature? Even his caricature is missing."

"I don't know why that is but it seems KID is planning a solo heist." Hakuba raised an eyebrow when he saw the shrunken detective copying the note into a small brown notebook, "What are you doing?"

"I'm copying the note!" Conan replied happily, "I wanna show it to the rest of the Shonen Tantei. I just _know_ they're gonna want to solve this. And this way, Hakuba-niisan gets to keep _his_ copy of the note," Conan ginned enthusiastically up at the detective. Hakuba marveled at how similar it was compared to a certain childhood friend's grin.

**Final Notes: First off, before I forget, I want to say that anyone who knows about anything regarding 'waykamatayan' to please keep quiet. Eventually the word's importance will be explained but I've got that planned for much later so…yeah. If you happen to know its significance then yay! My mind has then begun to reveal itself to you. (but **_**shhh**_**… let's keep it a secret until it decides to reveal itself. K?)**

**And another note: There are already quite a few enigmas popping up in this story and some of them won't be revealed for a while. In the meantime, please bear with me and wait until they unveil themselves. Just pray that they'll make sense (According to my sister, they do so… let's hope she wasn't lying…)**

**Hmm.. Let's see… What else…? Ah, this story may be about thieves but it's also about bonds, making new ones and strengthening old ones. We already know of one big one between our two phantom thieves and there are already hints of one beginning in this chapter. Trust is a hard thing to give away. And here it seems people affected by the Organization have an even harder time with that trust.**

**This is getting a bit long but let me just apologize. The actually heist ended up being kinda rushed (at least it seemed rushed to me). I was extremely focused on getting Mage's commentary on the gem into the chapter so everything was kinda sped up so I could get that in…**

**. **_**Next up in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "God, you sound horrible! Even **_**with**_** a disguised voice."**_


	11. Diamond White (9)

**A/N: Part three of the Pandora Arc. Remember what I said about enigmas and bonds and such? Well keep that in mind…**

**Warnings: Diseases and falling**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): I'm really glad I shortened up the chapters… less pressure on me and more chapters more often.. But I've been soooo busy over the weekends recently which is the main block of time that I use for writing my story (since I'm too busy during school days with homework and shiz) so this is coming a little later than I hoped but… it's here right? So don't kill me… please?**

**Today's quote is (again more of a brief conversation): "In what state is Oxygen found?" –Ms. Nyland**

"**All of them." –Azarath (aka me) -This is more of a 'You had to be there moment' but believe me… it was hilarious…**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Diamond White

* * *

Beika, Japan

Teitan Elementary

September 20, 3:21 PM

When school was finally over and the five members of the Shonen Tantei exited their school, they were immediately met with the familiar faces of Ran and Kasuma, the latter covering her mouth and nose with a white surgical mask. Ayumi, always the curious one, ran up to the teenagers and asked, "Kasuma-oneesan, why are you wearing that mask?"

"I've got a cold," Kasuma stated bluntly, "And Ai-chan slipped it into my book bag." She looked at Haibara who was just now reaching the spot they were waiting at, "I realize you don't want to get sick, Ai-chan, but I'm not contagious. It's only the common cold."

"It still never hurts to be cautious," Haibara replied, staring at the ground.

"True but with a few of my parent's herbal remedies, I'll be fine in a couple days… or less," Kasuma shrugged. "They work wonders."

"Ne, ne, did you hear about the new heist location?" Genta announced, excited, "I saw it on the news today!"

"Oh yeah," Ran placed a finger against her chin, "I have no idea how or _why_ they're trying to pull that off but I heard it's supposed to make it really hard for KID or Mage to steal it."

"Isn't it just KID this time? Mage didn't sign the last note," Conan pointed out.

"That's another curious factor. They just recently teamed up but suddenly KID's pulling a heist alone? It doesn't make sense." Kasuma murmured, "In any case, it'll be interesting to see what KID's gonna do to get the jewel off the top of Tokyo Tower. I _really_ want to know what was running through Nakamori-keibu's mind when he came up with _that_."

"Yeah. Placing the jewel on top of the Special Observatory deck with police helicopters surrounding the spot. That'll be a little difficult since he won't be able to use his glider. It's a good thing the note got solved quickly; the police would have completely missed it," Ran remarked. "It's in two days isn't it?"

Kasuma nodded, "Yep two days… the 'second reversible double digit.' Really I'm not surprised it got solved that fast… there were tons of people working to solve it. I heard that the Shonen Tantei even solved part of it, ne?"

Genta, Ayumi, and Mitsuhiko beamed proudly. "Of course, Conan helped us a little but we had just gone over something similar to that in class," Mitsuhiko answered honestly, "The second reversible double digit is twenty-two."

"Right," Kasuma nodded, "And the first one is eleven, correct?" The three kids nodded rapidly. "The eleventh had already passed and since a month can never have thirty-three days, naturally that left twenty-two. The Latin number added in at the end tells us that they'll take their target at eleven 'o clock, or 'undecim.'"

"And the 'snowy stead will claim a checkmate' indicates the game Chess, otherwise the White Horse. And a large diamond with the same name is being displayed in a nearby museum, making that the heist target!" Conan finished eagerly.

"Well, we'll see you guys around," Kasuma said, waving a hand sloppily. "This is where we separate." Kasuma, with Haibara trailing behind her, turned a corner and they headed down the street towards Kasuma's house.

There was silence between the two of them up until Kasuma's house was approaching. The gate opened easily enough and the two entered the Western styled house. Inside, Haibara made to head up the stairs to her room but was stopped by Kasuma's voice addressing her, "Ai-chan, I want to help you."

Confused at the sudden statement, Haibara turned around and looked at the teen that had set her book bag down on a nearby table and was peering up at her, "What do you mean?"

"I want to help you, I _really_ want to help," Kasuma said, hoping Haibara would get the hidden message she was purposely slipping in, "You as well as Conan-kun. Whatever I can do, whatever I can offer, I want to give it to you." Silently she added, 'I want you to realize that I'm an ally… not an enemy.'

"Help with what?" Haibara pressed, suppressing her sudden nervousness. What could she help them with?

"Anything," Kasuma stated. She fell silent, waiting for a reply. When none came Kasuma sighed, "You don't trust me… neither does Conan-kun. But _I_ trust you… both of you, which is why I'm going to tell you something I've never told anyone else before. My parents… before they died, were scientists…"

Haibara's head fell onto her arms, the degrading elementary math book strewn off to the side, forgotten. The shrunken scientist glared at her door as her thoughts ran amuck, 'She… trusted me with that information… info she's never told anyone else about… I was the first person to hear about this… she told me, a complete _stranger_, her most well hidden secrets. I mean… thanks to _him_ I was forewarned but I never would have guessed otherwise… what she's had to deal with… She _witnessed_ it… her parents' demise… That _bitch_ struck again… without even _flinching_…! And she… but _why_? She was spared… She said she doesn't even know… then again, _no one_ knows what goes on in that bitch's head.' Haibara took in a sharp breath.

'How was I supposed to respond to that? All of _that_? She trusts me but… can I trust _her_? She's an ally… I know that now but… I've lived my life in fear… never knowing who I could trust, who I should stay away from. I was always being watched, always under surveillance… well, so was she,' Haibara smirked to herself, 'We're more alike than I thought. My story… can I trust her with it? Hmph, what a stupid question, I _know_ I can. But can I bring myself to tell her about it? She… she wants to help. In any way possible she said. I don't know if I'm up to that. The only people who really know of my situation are Kudo-kun and Hakase… and even _they_ never got the full story. She's from the same background so it should be easier for me to confess to her. But it isn't. Why isn't it?

'Oneechan, she's so much like you. Is that why? Because I see you in her? Am I worried she would meet the same fate as you if I got too close? That somehow, by me trusting in her fully, I would only cause her demise? That sounds so stupid but…' Haibara looked up at the clock on her desk, 'He should be calling soon. As usual.'

Right on cue, Haibara's cell phone went off, the device moving slightly because of the vibrations emanating from the phone. Sighing, Haibara opened the cell phone, "What?"

"Oi, what's with the sudden hostility? I'm just wondering if you got anything new," Conan remarked.

'Really? It's like he's physic.' Haibara frowned, 'I really shouldn't tell him anything… she asked me not to,' Haibara recalled Kasuma's words after she had finished her story.

"_If I asked you not to tell Conan-kun about this, would you listen to me?"_

_Haibara was quiet, not hearing the question at first, too shocked at the revelation to find her voice. When she did, she answered with, "That depends I suppose."_

"_Well, please don't tell Conan-kun… at least not yet. You understand as well as I do what would happen if my secret slipped, Sherry… iie, Miyano-chan."_

'She just _loves_ throwing surprises doesn't she?' Haibara thought sardonically, 'She didn't even explain to me how she knew of my codename… or my _real_ name at that.'

"Haibara?" Conan inquired, "_Did_ you get anything new?"

"…No, nothing new yet," Haibara answered, 'Sorry Kudo-kun… but I don't think she's ready to tell you. Though you might not have to wait long.'

* * *

Internet

Video Chat via Web Cam

September 20, 4:41 PM

"And even though I've already said this: You. Are. Not. Going. To. This. Heist. Got that?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Just don't get yourself in trouble out there." Mage shrugged, thumbing through a stack of papers. "Besides, I'm going to be busying myself in the Lair with future targets. I've already got several in mind."

KID nodded, "Good. It'll be good to get those targets narrowed down. And I'm sure you also have other stuff you have to catch up on, right?"

Mage sighed, glancing at KID through the camera, "Yeah, unfortunately. I'll have lots of work to finish up so I can turn it all in after I recover. It's a good thing my teachers are easy to get a hold of. And classmates have been giving me notes… haven't looked at them quite yet but… I've been focusing on other stuff."

KID raised an eyebrow, "Like what?"

"Jewels, jewels, herbal remedies, jewels, A Lion Among Men, jewels… I think you get the point."

"Yeah, you made that pretty clear," KID answered, letting out a small laugh.

"Good. I hoped I wasn't too cryptic," Mage drawled, pulling up a popular search engine and looking up one of jewels on the list. "Oh, the heist is set to be atop Tokyo Tower, how do you plan on pulling that off?"

"Well the first step would be to get up into the air. I was hoping you could use your connections again to get a helicopter up there as I'm sure the police will have it surrounded, making my glider useless. I'm surprised no one noticed the difference at the last heist… Well, it _was _noticed, just a little too late to do anything about it."

"I'm sure I could get another helicopter out there again," Mage said, "I just hope I don't get their owners in trouble for aiding and abetting a criminal… or two… They're good friends of friends and I wouldn't want to tarnish their good name."

"Yeah. But unless someone recognizes the copter and pinpoints it to its owner then they should be safe. But your contact is pretty private aren't they?"

"Yeah. And they don't try to draw much attention to them… only working in relatively closed-group situations but it never hurts to be cautious."

"You can say that again." KID agreed.

"I'm still curious as to how you're going to get up there." Mage remarked, bringing up the subject again.

Out of the corner of his eye, Mage could see KID shrug, "I'll figure out something. I could, depending on the officers' positions, hit them with a good dose of sleeping gas. Of course, I won't if they're not in the securest of places… wouldn't want anyone falling down the length of Tokyo Tower. That's a whopping three hundred thirty-two point five meters!"

Mage scoffed, "That would leave a scar… far worse than Cinderella's Castle would. Her castle is fifty-eight meters I believe, one hundred eighty-nine if we're talking feet."

KID also let out a scoff, "That's for sure. The jewel's supposed to be atop the Special Observatory… well it'll probably be a bit higher, above the digital broadcasting equipment… and I recall a multitude of steel beams above it. It would be hard to get people in a comfortable position _anywhere_ up there. It might be safer for there to be no officers up there at _all_. Though that only makes it a tad easier for us but I'm not complaining."

Mage released a short laugh, "That'll be a spectacle to see. Unless the information has been leaked to the public, which it probably has, the people on the Observatory at that time will certainly be shocked."

"Yeah, especially when I burst in in a," KID made air quotes, "'flurry' looking for a way to escape."

Mage chuckled before sparing KID a short glance, "I could really help you out there, you know. Maybe divert some of their attention; maybe even draw some of them away from the tower itself. You could use all the help you could get."

KID huffed, "I told you. You are not going to this heist."

"Yeah, yeah," Mage waved off the comment, "I still think you're giving this too much thought. I'd be fine."

"And you're not putting _enough_ thought into it. You could get caught. Your reaction time was slowed down, Tantei-kun almost got you last time." KID retorted.

"Regardless, I'd be _fine_." Mage reiterated, "Tantei-kun won't be catching me any time soon."

"'It never hurts to be cautious,'" KID replied, quoting Mage's previous statement. "You know there's some truth behind that."

Mage hummed, sorting the stack of papers on the desk of the 'Lair' and pulling out select sheets of paper. Meanwhile, KID had pulled down a cardboard box from one of the numerous shelves and extracted several small plastic bags, digging though the contents of each bag, "Ne, besides sleeping gas, what else could be used on the police officers? Opinions?"

Mage paused in his work and looked at KID, "…Stink bombs…?"

KID also paused, "Hmm… then I need some _nasty_ smelling smoke. Got any ideas?" KID looked at his partner.

Mage shrugged, "I'm sure we can concoct something rancid. Shouldn't be too hard so long as we avoid the rotten egg smell. They might mistake it for natural gas."

"I just hope the smell doesn't linger. My favorite lookout spot is on Tokyo Tower and I don't want to be smelling our bomb while I'm staking out a heist location."

"That'd be a bummer. Though the smoke should clear fast enough... That tower _is_ a good vantage point. You can see as far as Mount Fuji on good days," Mage agreed. "You're lookout spot… where exactly is it?"

"Ah, on top of the Main Observatory," KID answered.

"The Main Observatory stands at one hundred fifty meters… that's a little more comforting compared to the Special Observatory's at two hundred fifty meters. And it's still high enough that the helicopters shouldn't run into any difficulties. That would be a better spot to hold the heist. I hope Nakamori-keibu takes into account the danger it could inflict on his men and lowers the heist location. We may not want to get caught by the Task Force, but we certainly don't want them dead."

"Blood's never a good thing," KID nodded, intently reading the labels of a few nearby bottles. "If Nakamori doesn't change the location, we really should step in… express worries, maybe slip into a disguise? But I hope he realizes this on his own time, without our interference."

"Blood," Mage mumbled, "There's already too much spilled… we may have to step it up. Which is why I'm looking into starting up one of my famous Week Long Heists."

"'Week Long Heist?' Is it _really_one week?" KID inquired.

"Yep," was the terse answer, "I don't pull off many mainly because it's damn _hard_ to bring in as many targets as I usually do during them but most of the people who have chased me know of them… as well as a good population of the world; the heist takes me _everywhere_. Course I don't expect anyone in Japan to know of them as I haven't been active around here until recently, but I hope to acquaint them soon." Mage resumed an earlier task of sifting through the good sized stack of papers, "A lot of the targets in this pile are all over the place. There are several in the Osaka-Kyoto area and a few in Kyushu. I also found several in the Sapporo region as well as, of course, many in Tokyo and surrounding areas. I just need to narrow it down."

"From what I can see, you've got quite a stack there."

"You got that right," Mage nodded, "I'll probably send a good amount over to you. Two heads are better than one, ne?"

* * *

Beika, Japan

Mouri Detective Agency

September 21, 7:37 AM

Haibara quirked an eyebrow as the teenager in front of her placed her ear against the door, listening for movement on the other side. The teen nodded to herself then pulled out a set of lock picks, selecting the specific tools she needed and working the lock to the agency's office. "You're making me feel like a criminal you know that?" Haibara deadpanned.

Shrugging, Kasuma paused for only a second, sending Haibara a quick glance before redirecting her focus to the door, "It's a useful skill to have."

"So is knocking," Haibara retorted. Another thought crossing her mind caused Haibara to approach a different topic, "How did you know?"

"Know what, Ai-chan?"

"You know what I'm talking about. What you said yesterday… how did you know?"

"Yesterday?" Kasuma paused again, briefly, before comprehension crossed her features, "Oh, e-mail."

'E-mail…? That _still_ doesn't tell me anything,' Haibara frowned. "That's all you're going to say?"

"Yeah, that's how I know, e-mail. No need to really elaborate." A faint click heard, Kasuma returned her tools to their proper place in her hidden jacket pocket and quietly opened the door. Inside, Mouri was already at his desk, beer cans littering the flat surface. One book bag, Ran's, and one backpack, Conan's, sat readily by the door, patiently awaiting their respective owners to retrieve them. Kasuma set her own bag beside Ran's and walked out, closing the door quietly. "So it was Mouri-san I heard," the girl mumbled as she ascended the stairs in order to stand in front of the second floor entrance. Once again, Kasuma extracted her lock picks and set off to work at the door. More to herself than to anyone else, Kasuma murmured, "I wonder if I can get this one open again. It'd be the second time in a row."

Before she could finish her work, the door opened and Conan stood there, hand on the handle. He openly stared at the teen as she huffed and put away her tools, "You ruined all the fun, Conan-kun."

"Kasuma-neechan…? You were trying to pick the lock again." It wasn't a question but a statement.

"I guess you heard the rattling from the door," Kasuma sighed, "You ruined my chance to beat my record."

"Kasuma? You're here early," Ran said, shocked, as she exited her room, dressed and ready to go.

The early riser shrugged, "Didn't feel like sleeping in, shockingly. To wound up for some reason," Kasuma sent Haibara a knowing look, but turned her attention back to Ran before Conan could tell what the action was. "Mind if I go snooping around in your room for a bit? 'Kay thanks," Kasuma didn't wait for an answer and strode into Ran's room.

"Ch-chotto, Kasuma!" Ran maneuvered herself to her room, which was now closed with the door locked, "Oi! What are you doing in there?" Ran knocked, hoping for an answer but to no avail.

Haibara smirked and shook her head, "She's looking for the present."

"You mean the present that's _supposed_ to be from me even though I have _no idea_ what's in it?" Conan glanced worriedly at the closed door of his caretaker and childhood friend's room.

"Probably," Haibara shrugged, "Earlier today she was scouring the attic for tissue paper. And there's only a select amount you can use tissue paper for—"

Kasuma exited just then and closed the door quietly. Without a word, she descended the stairs to retrieve her bag from the agency floor, Ran following her the entire way, questioning her actions inside her room. Pointedly ignoring Ran's inquiries, Kasuma picked up Ran's school bag and held it out to her saying, "We're going to be late for school. We should be going." Kasuma also picked up Conan's backpack and passed it off to him as he and Haibara reached the agency's door. Haibara scoffed at the poorly disguised distraction attempt, emphasis on the word 'attempt,' as Ran was still ruthlessly questioning Kasuma about 'your _highly_ suspicious actions inside my room that evoked such a loud noise from within.' Kasuma walked behind Ran slightly, a huge grin on her face that further prodded Ran's worry-induced questions. "You did something in there…" Ran was saying, "What was it?"

Kasuma placed a single finger against her lips, still turned upwards in a manic grin rivaling the famous 'Kaito grin' as Aoko had dubbed it one time during a shopping trip Ran, Kasuma, and Aoko had embarked on. "Himitsu," Kasuma answered, dropping her hand to have it instead grab hold of the book bag that was hiding behind the teen.

For a while, as they neared one of the two meeting points, it was quiet. Until, "…Something's burning," Haibara said quietly, praying the comment would go unheard by one of the two teenagers.

"Onii-chan!" a female voice yelled.

Four heads turned instinctively towards the voice, one immediately regretting the action. Across the street a two-story house was engulfed in orange, flames licking at wood. The speaker, a small girl with black pigtails was being restrained by an older woman with the same shade of black hair, the woman visibly suppressing tears.

To the eyes of the recent transfer student, the surroundings morphed, the view blurred due to tears that were trying to escape. One minute she was in Japan, the next she found herself in Oregon, surrounded on all four sides by lush evergreen trees. The two story house in Japan became a three story house in central Oregon, the nearest shop being several miles away. A pre-teen hid behind a tall Douglas fir tree, cell phone clenched tightly in her hand, body pressed against the rough bark as bright red fire trucks finally arrived, far too late to do anything except put out the fire to spare the surrounding trees. Tears streamed continuously down her face, fear shown in her blue orbs instead of hatred… which was what she _should_ have been feeling. Instead, the girl was petrified as she slid down the length of the tree and buried her face between her knees, silent sobs raking her form. Before sleep overtook her, the girl felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her as the figure, a man, knelt beside her, comforting her as she leaned into his embrace…

A small hand gripping her wrist broke Kasuma from her inner turmoil. Taken aback by the fire trucks that had appeared while she zoned out, Kasuma ripped her eyes away from the dreaded force of nature to instead settle on Haibara's hand. "I knew I shouldn't have mentioned it," Haibara whispered, wary of her word choice, "Should have expected a similar reaction." Raising her voice slightly, Haibara added, "Let's go. We'll be late… and Edogawa-kun and Mouri-chan are gaining ground on us."

Kasuma shook her head, removing any unwanted memories from the front of her mind and speeded past the dimming fire to meet up with Ran and Conan, Haibara following promptly behind her.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo Tower

September 22, 10:42 PM

Tokyo Tower sat surrounded by police helicopters, the copters slowly circling the tower. Thankfully, Nakamori had surveyed the tower and, by his own intellect, lowered the heist location to the Main Observatory where the ground was steadier and "easier for my men to move around when KID drops in."

The Observatory itself was closed due to the heist that night and the only people inside it were a few officers, previously checked for any fake skin, watching out for any sign of the thief. Of course, as per usual, the officers atop the observatory had been checked as well, tell-tale red pinch marks being sported on each of their cheeks. Speaking of the officers, they were currently finishing up with gathering their current findings: very small, well-hidden, gas or smoke—no one wanted to test out any of them—bombs. After contacting Nakamori about the devices, the Inspector had sent up an officer and a bag to collect all the bombs, the last found device being placed inside the bag for the lucky officer who had to trek down the Tower again by way of stairs (as Nakamori didn't want the elevators to be running during the heist).

Meanwhile, settled on the roof of a nearby building, a form engulfed in shadow perched themself on the edge nearest the tower, black binoculars poised on the Main Observatory, counting the number of bodies on the roof of the viewing deck.

Elsewhere, within the confines of an airborne aircraft, another form hidden underneath a black cloak snuck a glance outside the window, quickly scanning the steel roof below. A grin appeared and the figure ducked under the window to avoid the eyes of any officer that happened to glance in the direction of the copter. After all, there was only supposed to be one person in this certain helicopter. The cloaked figure snickered, "Sometimes it's so easy to fool the authorities. They haven't even noticed the fake text on the side of the chopper."

"Yes, well my forgeries are excellent and hard to discern without close analysis, Bocchama. However, I'm still surprised at the number of contacts Mage-san has at his disposal."

"Oi, oi, Jii-chan," KID drawled, "Mage has told you to drop the honorific… numerous times now." The young thief peeked out the window again, "Maa, guess you've developed a habit by now but Mage still isn't gonna like it."

"I still don't understand why you've forbidden Mage-san from attending the heist," Konosuke Jii mused, looking behind him quickly to peer at KID.

"Mage needs to lie back for a while. That idiot doesn't know when to quit," KID sighed.

'Well neither do you, Bocchama,' Jii thought.

"Mage also wanted to look into starting some heist Mage is famous for and now would be the opportune time to begin planning for that."

The shadowed body lowered the binoculars to glance at their watch, checking the time. 'The arrival time is approaching… What will you do, KID?' Binoculars were raised again, 'There are seven helicopters surrounding the tower, all of them hovering far too close for you to get in by hang glider. The ten guards around the jewel have already found all of your bombs and in addition, they're too spread apart to use any of your projectiles without someone being able to avoid it. You're in a bind aren't you?'

Pushing through the crowd while simultaneously cursing his current height, Conan tried to move to a more barren area in the crowd, not like that was likely. Making his way towards the tower itself and conveniently towards the front of the crowd, Conan found Ran and Sonoko standing next to the yellow tape surrounding the tower. "Ran-neechan!"

Ran turned towards the boy, relief evident in her eyes as Conan approached her, "Conan-kun. Where were you?"

Conan laughed weakly, "Eh, I got separated… the crowd's _huge_ tonight!"

Ran nodded in agreement, "The news spread pretty fast, it was only a matter of time." Ran straightened and looked at Sonoko who seemed to be lost in thought, "Sonoko, you're acting strange. I thought you'd be extremely excited for this heist."

Sonoko didn't answer immediately which led to Ran waving a hand in front of her face. Sonoko shook her head, "Gomen, Ran. I just can't shake the feeling I've seen that helicopter somewhere else before."

"What?" Ran looked up at the circling helicopters, "What do you mean, those are police copters."

"Well, all but one," Sonoko pointed out the copter in question, "It belongs to the same group or company or whatever as the one at the last heist… the one one of the thieves was in. That must be how KID is going to get the jewel."

Conan zoomed in on the helicopter and confirmed that yes indeed, it _was_ the same type of copter as the one that appeared at the last heist. 'But I only see one person in the chopper; it doesn't look like KID's in there. So maybe that's KID's escape route… unless KID really _is_ in there and is only hiding himself until the designated time arrives…' Conan read the time on his watch, 'Which is very soon.'

"Where's Nakamori-keibu?" Ran said just then, "He should be warned of that helicopter."

"I don't know, I haven't seen him yet," Sonoko answered, "But he shouldn't be far from the tower."

"I'll go find him," Conan announced happily. The teen turned boy made to move but the countdown from the crowd stopped him.

"Ten." The soon to be audience looked up eagerly at the tower.

"Nine." The police officers were shuffling swiftly to their positions.

"Eight." The seven police copters, fake one included, hovered closer to the red structure.

"Seven." Nakamori's bellowing voice could be heard throughout the crowd, orders to 'stay alert' ringing through the radios.

"Six." The crowd inched forward, awaiting the appearance the thief would soon initiate.

"Five." The figure on a nearby roof, still shrouded in darkness, smirked.

"Four." KID, from within the fake police copter, scanned the surroundings one last time.

"Three." Conan tried to squeeze his way to the front of the large group.

"Two." The shrouded figure and KID himself shifted in anticipation and Hakuba, from another part of the crowd, looked at his pocket watch.

"One." The Task Force braced themselves for the thief's arrival.

"Zero." Nothing happened. No plume of smoke, no white glider, no shouts of excitement from the crowd, no highly un-amusing trick or prank, nothing. Murmurs broke out through the crowd, inquiries on where KID was and why he hadn't shown himself yet spreading rapidly.

"Great turnout tonight," a voice rang out. Everyone looked around for the voice that _must_ have come from KID but didn't quite sound like him. Laughter filled the air and a large cloud of smoke engulfed the observatory rooftop. When the smoke cleared seconds later, the audience expected to find KID atop the tower only to be disappointed when nothing had changed.

Somewhere in the crowd, Hakuba looked at his watch and frowned, "You're exactly fifty-one seconds late, KID."

"What's going on up there?" Nakamori was saying through his radio.

Through the static of the radio, an officer announced that nothing had happened or changed as of yet. Just as the inspector ordered the officers to hold their positions, the shadowed figure stepped onto the edge of the roof, the light of the moon revealing white pants and shoes. Smirking, the figure encased in white leaped off the roof, cape snapping out to form a wing-shaped glider. The sudden action brought the crowd's attention to the figure first diving down the length of the building then pulling up abruptly and making its way to Tokyo Tower.

As KID stared at the blob of white, he found himself frowning and thinking, 'Oi kimi, you were supposed to rest tonight!'

After a moment of confusion had passed, the crowd erupted in cheers, rooting for the thief who had made an unexpected visit. 'I-It's Mage!' Conan stared in disbelief, 'He wasn't supposed to come! He didn't sign the note… what's going on?'

The thief forbidden from coming smirked as he caught sight of Hakuba sifting through his pockets. 'Perfect,' the thief thought before banking around the tower as well as the helicopters in order to give the detective a clear shot without any obstacles. 'The river's approximately one thousand meters from Tokyo Tower. If he gives me enough time to get substantial distance away from the tower then this should all go according to plan.'

"What's going on?" Sonoko asked Ran over the roar of the crowd.

"I have no idea. Mage wasn't supposed to come tonight," was Ran's answer.

There was a loud _bang_ and Conan whipped his head up and around to search for the sound, 'Don't tell me it's another sniper attack!' The thief in the sky seemed to wobble slightly as what must have been a bullet hit the white speck. Conan zoomed in on the thief using his glasses, searching for anything stained red. Instead of locating a stain, Conan caught sight of a small hole in the fabric of Mage's glider. Conan sighed, 'It was Hakuba, not a sniper.'

Whether it was from the bullet hole or Mage's own steering, the glider dove rapidly at a slight angle, Conan following the movement closely with the use of his glasses. As the thief approached Tokyo Bay, the glider suddenly snapped shut and, eyes wide, Conan watched as Mage dived into the blue waters of the bay. With the thief's dive being so far away and so close to the ground, neither the crowd nor the many members of the Task Force or Nakamori-keibu saw the action. Therefore, when the inspector saw the thief falling rapidly, he immediately sent some of the circling helicopters after the thief in order to search for Mage. 'And then there were four,' Conan thought sardonically, 'Of course, not counting the fake police helicopter.'

The once worried crowd—worried because of the 'crash' everyone saw—was now cheering as a familiar pink smoke covered the roof of the Main Observatory. Before the smoke cleared, a voice projecting itself throughout the crowd announced, "Ladies and Gentlemen!" the smoke cleared, revealing the one and only Kaitou KID. "I thank you very much for taking time out of your busy schedules to come join me in liberating this beautiful lady, White Horse, from her lonely stable. As you can see, my partner decided to show up after all and I must see to it that my dear Aibou makes it out of that frigid water." KID faked a shiver, then, waving happily to the Task Force atop the tower as well as the Inspector down below, ran towards the edge of the roof before anyone could stop him and dove off, releasing his hang glider seconds later while simultaneously avoiding the copters hovering about.

A small, white slip of paper flapped restlessly in the wind near the spot KID had launched himself from. When an officer noticed it and handed it to Nakamori when the heist was over, Nakamori read this: The Blue Pearl will roll to us when the seven meets the eight. –KID and Mage

**Final Notes: A good portion of this chapter's beginning was focused on our dear scientist friend, Haibara, and her conflicting thoughts.**

**And yes, it's true: Kasuma has pyrophobia (or arsonphobia). Won't say why though I'm sure some of you can infer why she's in such a state…**

**Don't you feel sorry for that poor officer who had to run down the **_**stairs**_** of **_**Tokyo Tower**_**?**

**Oh, a note: ****A Lion Among Men**** is a book by Gregory Maguire. He also wrote ****Wicked**** (yes.. like the musical **_**Wicked**_**) and ****Son of a Witch**** (not to be mistaken for Son of a B****) as well as many other books that I haven't gotten around to reading yet. I am absolutely in love with the Wicked Years series and when I found this book over the summer, I flipped out :D**

**And no, I was not thinking of Taylor Swift when I named the jewel, just so that's clear.**

**Sadly (or maybe not), I don't have a preview of next chapter to show you all but… maybe it's a good thing… But even though there's no preview, maybe a small hint of sorts would entice your curiosity? I think you'll get a kick out'a the next chapter's title. Next chapter, someone leaves and never comes back. Innocents are blamed and detectives are stumped by one miniscule detail… Stay tuned!**


	12. Murderers (10)

**A/N: Part four of the Pandora Arc! We're making progress… now we only have to endure the remaining… *coughmorethanacough* couple chapters that are left. *grins***

**Warnings: Latin profanities (and maybe other languages' profanities… not sure what I put in here) and just languages in general (translations at the bottom… except for aforementioned profanities)**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan and DCMonkey4EVR. And thank you to my fluffy, fluffy friend, Mari-chan for fixing Google's French translations. Love ya'll 3**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): I was looking through Story Traffic from the recent months and the thought that crossed my mind: "Holy ****! Over two-hundred hits?" That made me so happy! So thank you to everyone who has gained enough interest to hit my story two-hundred friggin' times! I love you guys~! Moving along, I hope Japan can recover from the earthquake/tsunami disaster that happened recently… On another topic, from now on, things said in English will be bolded. Anything in Japanese will look like this: **Japanese- **"**Konnichiwa!" **English- "Hello."**

**Today's quote is: "They have leprosy? …Well, that sucks!" –Solea**

**Trivia time! 'Solea' is Latin for 'sandal.' (And who said fanfiction wasn't educational?)**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Murderers—KID and Mage

* * *

World Wide Web

Video Chat via Web Cam

September 23, 12:15 PM

"You're still sick, huh." A student in a black gakuran and black hat said to another student on the other side of the screen who was coughing up a storm. "That crash in the river must have made it worse," he remarked, sending a worried glance through the camera.

"Yeah, seems like God doesn't want me to get better." A raspy, muffled voice answered while adjusting the blue hat that had concealed the speaker's hair. "But technically it wasn't a crash. I did it on purpose."

"God, you sound horrible! Even _with_ a disguised voice." KID remarked.

"Well, _sorry_ for not being able to disguise my disease," came the response followed by a weak sigh.

"Heh," KID fought back a laugh, "So… only concealing half your face, eh Mage?"

"Well how else am I supposed to eat lunch? Unlike _someone_, I have to deal with a mask covering my face!" Mage retorted.

"You don't _have_ to use a mask." KID mumbled, folding his arms across his chest.

"One of the cons for concealing your identity," Mage answered holding a single finger up in the camera. "Oi, isn't it the middle of the school day? There isn't a class now?"

"Of course there is… and I'm acing it!" KID exclaimed, holding up a simple sandwich and some onigiri.

"Mou, Kaito! Why are you all the way over there?" a female voice asked.

"Shit, block it Mage!"

"Kaito, what are you doing here… Who are you talking to? You're gonna get in trouble," the newest voice commented.

"I know that _Ahoko_, but I'm not going to _get_ in trouble. I'm just seeing how my sick friend is doing." KID-Kaito looked at the black screen, "Are you still there… Sekai?"

There was a small cough from 'Sekai'. "Yeah, I'm here, just getting my lunch." The sheet covering the camera lens was removed and 'Sekai' was seated on a bed, opening a soup container. The blue hat remained, as did the red t-shirt and black sweat pants but the room looked entirely different. Not to mention, there was an entirely new face plastered on instead of the previously worn mask. Deep red paint covered the walls and the walls were decorated with golden sponge imprints.

'Idiot, what are you doing?' KID thought. 'And how in the hell did you get into costume so damn fast? Not to mention getting into a different room!'

"Oh, get well soon, Sekai-kun!" Aoko exclaimed, "And don't call me Ahoko, _Ba-kaito_!"

Aoko left in a flurry and KID visibly relaxed. "She's cute… Nakamori's kid right?" Mage asked, suddenly dropping the 'Sekai' identity.

"How the hell did you do that?" KID mumbled.

"A magician never reveals his secret. You should know that."

"Fine, fine," KID shrugged, "_Don't_ tell me." KID removed the sandwich from its encasement, taking a large bite and chewing slowly.

Mage began unfolding a tan blanket that was seated on the bed. He tossed the fabric lightly in the air and when it rested again on the surface of the bed, the disguise was gone and Mage was once again wearing half of a mask. Mage sighed and rested his head against his hand, "Stercus fit."

"Sorry Mage, but I don't speak 'dead language.' You'll have to translate," KID answered, grinning.

"I'd rather not. That was a rather… unsavory choice of words." Mage replied, setting the soup can off to the side. "But you have no idea how boring it is being stuck at home. I need to burn off energy _somehow_ and being holed up at home isn't helping."

"Weellll then," KID drawled, "Use some of that energy to do school work or something."

"Finished."

"Finalizing our heist plan?"

"You wanted to do that."

"That big epic heist you were talking about earlier?"

"That's pretty much finished too. Honestly, I started working on it the moment I set foot in Japan."

"Geez," KID huffed, "Over-achiever, you're taking all the fun out of this!"

Mage grinned, showing teeth, "Good. It's entertaining to drain the fun out of your everyday tactics."

KID pouted childishly, "Stingy."

Mage's grin widened, "And proud to be." Mage adjusted the blue hat atop his head, hiding small tufts of hair behind the article of clothing. "Seriously, I'm bored out'a my mind! I've got nothing to do here! I need suggestions, anything will do… within reason of course."

"What about planning future _future_heists? I'm sure you haven't done anything about _those_. And neither have I so maybe you could do that… it'll keep you busy and we'll be ahead of schedule." KID paused briefly, "Although, you might wanna leave a blank space in the riddle—or riddles—so we can simply add in the designated date… that way, we don't end up cramping everything together too tight and we won't have anything concrete if something goes wrong at a heist."

The thief bearing a disease sighed, "Guess so... it'll give me something to do. Guess I'll do that then. So I suppose I'd better go." Mage sent a wave through the camera, KID returned it rapidly and the small circle tracking Mage's status went grey.

* * *

Beika, Japan

Outside the Mouri Detective Agency

September 23, 3:45 PM

Kasuma plopped herself down near the stairs of the Detective Agency, reading… rather, _beginning _to read a fairly large packet. Haibara stood next to her as the teen read, patiently waiting for said teen to comment. After a few quick minutes of silence, Haibara carefully approached the topic of interest, "So do you think it's possible?"

Kasuma was silent for a while before she formed a coherent sentence, "Hmm… there's certainly a high probability of it being possible. Though I haven't studied far enough into this to know for sure. Apoptosis on its own, I'm sure of, cannot do that, but with the help of something else…I'm sure it could happen. The question is what is that 'something else'?"

"That's what I've been trying to figure out," Haibara sighed.

"I know. I can tell from all this info," Kasuma nodded. "But I don't see how such a small amount would cause a _drastic_ change." Kasuma waved her hand up and down Haibara's frame, showcasing the scientist's situation.

"At least it wasn't a negative effect… like death," Haibara shrugged.

"Well in a sense it is," Kasuma slipped the packet into a manila folder, "Your original body is gone for an undetermined amount of time and you're, in a sense, using a 'fake body' even if it technically _is_ your real body. Kinda like my situation… someone died and someone else took… o-ove—"

Kasuma stiffened at the sight of Conan, Ran, and the rest of the Shonen Tantei just as they made it to the agency, Haibara freezing more subtly beside her. "Aw shit," Kasuma mumbled, scrambling to get up and cover the label on the pale yellow folder. Too late however, for Conan had gotten a glimpse of the name 'Apoptosis' and his eyes widened marginally, fear shone clearly in them. Both Kasuma and Haibara smacked themselves mentally for not noticing the approaching presence. "H-Hey guys!" Kasuma said, plastering on a smug expression, "Beat ya."

Ran scoffed, "Of course you beat us, you ditched school… and it seems like Ai-chan did as well."

As Haibara fumbled for a possible excuse to use, Kasuma barreled on and replied with, "Ai-chan was talking about getting some chemicals so she could perform a flame test and the best shop to get those supplies was in the next city. So I drove her over there to pick out some I didn't already have. We needed," Kasuma began counting on her fingers, "magnesium sulfate, barium chloride, copper sulfate, sodium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium chloride, and one other with lithium in it."

"Isn't that a bit dangerous for Ai-chan to be performing?" Ran asked, skeptical.

'Technically, given my current physical age and appearance, yes it is,' Haibara thought, 'But I doubt she'd really _do_ a flame test anyway. She _hates_ fire.'

Kasuma quickly hid the folder in the thin backpack she had sitting on the sidewalk and slung it across her shoulder, disregarding the look Conan was still giving her. "Well, maybe you should change. I don't think you'd want to meet Aoko-chan in your school uniform."

Ran nodded slowly then ascended the stairs and entered the third floor room of the building, disappearing into her room. After a few minutes, Ran exited again with her cell phone and wallet in hand and grabbed the white purse Kasuma held out to her. She grabbed a jacket and slipped it over her pink blouse and ran down the stairs to meet the Shonen Tantei outside the agency. "Oi, Haibara," Conan pulled Haibara off to the side slightly, "What was that in Kasuma's possession? My eyes weren't mistaken when they read 'apoptosis' were they?"

"No," Haibara replied, "She really was reading something about apoptosis."

"If I'm not mistaken, that has connections to Apoptoxin-4869 right?"

"You're correct," was the terse response.

"Then what was she doing with a file like that? Did you give it to her? She'll only find out about me that much quicker if that is the case."

"Relax, she's not an enemy," Haibara answered.

"Is that supposed to reassure me? If so, it's not working," Conan deadpanned.

"Honestly, there's no need to worry. Yes, I gave her that file… and let me continue before you try to inject your two-cents in," Haibara said before Conan could retort. The chibified detective shut his mouth. "That file has everything pertaining to apoptosis. And it also has information regarding _my_ transformation, and mine alone."

"But then she already knows about you so it won't be a far jump to _me_," Conan hissed quietly.

"_I _didn't tell her _anything_!" Haibara hissed back, "She already knew about me apparently. Our parents knew each other, and I'm guessing she saw some photos from when I was young. She dug in a little deeper and confirmed it. Then she confronted me about it."

"Her parents are dead aren't they?" Conan asked lamely.

"_Baka!_ So are mine, what's your point? They obviously knew each other during the time they were _alive_. And you call yourself a detective?"

"Urusai…" Conan muttered, glaring at the ground in front of him. "So why give her the information on apoptosis?"

"I… was running a theory by her… to see what she thought about it. And I brought the file to give her more background on what I was working with." Haibara glanced up briefly at Kasuma. "According to her, she took highly advanced science and math classes in the States and in Europe."

"This theory… it relates to the antidote, right? What was it about?"

"The antidote? It involves it _indirectly_. It was actually a theory on the poison's _creation _and how, in turn, it affects the consumer."

"You know that already, don't you?"

Haibara shrugged, "I guess you could say that. But that's not necessarily true. Yes, I ran tests with the poison that showed that nine out of ten lab rats died from the poison. The remaining one tenth shrunk. But as to _what_ exactly caused the shrinkage isn't a clear vantage point to me. After all, my parents worked on the project before me… and someone else before _them_. The original thought process of that first team who worked on APTX is unbeknownst to me. I don't know what exactly they were aiming for. If I knew that… maybe it would make my job easier."

"But you said _you_ were the creator of the poison," Conan shot back, eyebrow raised in confusion, "What's all this talk about previous scientists?"

"Yes, I created the poison… I'm not denying that, but the information and some of the research was already completed by my predecessors; that's what I mean when I say that I don't really know their thought process."

"They created it... at least the _concept_ before you took over," Conan concluded.

"_Now_ you're acting like a detective," Haibara answered sardonically, smirking slightly.

"Urusai," Conan mumbled, coming to a stop as Ran and Kasuma stopped in front of him. Peering around the two teenagers, Conan saw Kasuma crouch down and tug on an invisible string. Ran, the Shonen Tantei, and Conan—instinctively—flinched and jumped back as an explosion of confetti fell from the sky, showering the ground the group would have found themselves on if Kasuma had not stopped them.

Kasuma stood up, "Kuroba Kaito, that's rude."

'Kuroba Kaito…?' Conan thought as Kasuma moved around the pile of paper and dragged the aforementioned prankster-magician out from behind a large vending machine by the collar. Kasuma glared at the messy-haired teen as he chuckled, his hands behind his head.

"C'mon… that wouldn't have been rude at all! Think of it as a welcome party as you make your way inside the mall!" Kaito grinned at the teen still glaring at him.

"'Welcome party' my ass. I'd rather not have confetti in my hair as I peruse the mall. By the way, where's Aoko-chan? I would think she'd be chasing you all over the mall for setting such a prank."

Right on cue, Nakamori Aoko came storming though the shopping mall's doors, brandishing her favorite weapon of choice, "_Kuroba Kaito, you idiot!_ Is _this_ what you flipped my skirt then locked me in the restroom for?" Aoko raised the mop over her head, "I won't forgive you!"

Kasuma stepped in-between the childhood friends. "Whoa, whoa, hold on Aoko-chan," Kasuma snatched the mop out of Aoko's hands, "While I'd _love_ to see you beat the crap out of Kaito here, I _really_ don't wanna have to call the security as you two are having your daily mop-chase routine. The cops here are rude when rubbed the wrong way."

Kaito and Aoko 'hmphed' childishly but didn't otherwise react. Instead, completely ignoring the teenage male, Aoko led her fellow female companions inside the mall. Conan looked behind him at Kaito, who was still sulking by the entrance, "Kaito-niichan, you'll be left behind." Kaito began muttering to himself as the confetti disappeared in a small puff of smoke. He then resorted to grumpily lagging behind Conan and the rest of the Shonen Tantei.

"Oi, Kasuma! Where are you going?" Ran yelled, watching Kasuma turning the corner before following her, the rest of the group trailing behind, confused.

"I'll be right back!" Kasuma called over her shoulder.

"Oh no you don't," Ran mumbled, following the girl. Ran, followed curiously by the other members of their group, found Kasuma as she entered one of the shops. "Kasuma, what are you doing?"

"They already have it out? Since when?" Kasuma mumbled to herself as she stared at the rack of merchandise, DVDs to be specific.

"Kasuma-chan, what is this place?" Aoko asked, looking around the store.

"It's a… uh, how do I say this… an 'international movie database' of sorts." Kasuma looked up at Aoko as she answered. "There are movies from all around the world here and _damn_ I've been out of it recently! Almost a year old? I saw the trailers practically a year ago and I didn't drag myself to a theatre? And I'm starting to rant," Kasuma finished, shutting her mouth as she picked up a movie from the rack.

"Pusshu…?" Ran read over the girl's shoulder.

"**Push,"** Kasuma corrected, "But I guess 'Pusshu' is how Japanese people would pronounce it. An American movie, if you couldn't tell. They also have movies from France, Germany, and Spain in this area, and it looks like Kaito found one of interest." Kasuma walked over to Kaito, who was intently reading the back of one of the feature films. Kasuma peeked at the title and cleared her throat, "Vous préférez donc les voleurs au lieu des détectives?"

Kaito stared at her in shock before he regained his Poker Face and smirked, "Ouais. Lupin est beaucoup mieux que Holmes."

Kasuma shook her head, waggling a finger in front of Kaito's face, "Je ne le croix pas. Poirot peut lattre Holmes et Lupin, deux mains vers le bas.

Kaito scoffed, "Poirot et Holmes _combiné_ ne pouraient pas attraper Lupin!"

"Dans tes rêves, _Magicien_," Kasuma retorted.

Aoko turned to Ran, "What are they saying?"

Ran shook her head, "I have no idea. They're talking way too fast. I can't even pick out pieces of their conversation."

"Vous ne l'avez pas vu? Honte à vous! Je l'ai regardé, même si je n'aime pas Lupin," Kasuma exclaimed, "Cela la règle, donne-moi cela. Je l'acheter pour vous." Kasuma grabbed the movie out of Kaito's hands and wacked him in the head with it, moving towards the back of the store.

"Attendez! Ne vous avisez pas!" Kaito chased after her, switching languages, "I mean wait! Don't you dare! Kasuma!"

Aoko and Ran giggled, watching Kaito try to pry the foreign movie from Kasuma's grip, to no avail. The two teenagers along with the five young detectives maneuvered themselves toward the area Kasuma and Kaito were occupying. "Ne, Conan-kun… that was French right?" Ayumi asked the boy quietly.

Conan nodded, "Yeah, though I have no idea what they were saying, that was definitely French."

"There was something about Holmes and Poirot," Haibara added, "I'm not sure what context they were used in, but those were the only words I could pick out."

After finally managing to pull herself away from the protesting teenager, Kasuma made it to the cashier and addressed the woman behind the counter, "Dito, gusto kung bilhin itong dalawang."

The woman smiled, glad to be able to speak in her native language, "Oo, padolong ng."

"Salamat," Kasuma replied, turning to face the dismayed magician, "Come on now, don't look so distraught. You said yourself that you wanted to see it. Now you can."

"I could have paid for it myself," Kaito muttered under his breath.

"Yes, but employees get discounts," Kasuma pointed out, holding up a finger.

"Kasuma-oneesan, how many languages do you know?" Ayumi asked, looking up at the teen. Genta and Mitsuhiko leaned in eagerly.

Kasuma chuckled, "Lots. Japanese, English, Latin, French, Spanish, Tagalog and Visayan, German, Russian, Italian, Arabic, and Greek."

"Russian…? Then do you know what… what was that word Conan-kun? Do you remember?" Ran glanced down at the boy.

"Do you mean 'vospominaniya' or 'volshebnik consta veka?'" Conan inquired, returning the girl's gaze.

"'Memories' and 'The Last Wizard of the Century?' What do _those_ have in common with each other?" Kasuma quirked an eyebrow.

"I guess she _does_ know them," Aoko murmured, "You're talking about that KID heist, right?"

Ran nodded, "He was after the Memories egg…"

"Let me guess… a Fabergé egg correct? Haven't heard of it before." Kasuma tapped her chin lightly then turned around to retrieve the small plastic bag the cashier held out to her. She thanked the woman again and directed her attention back on the members of their group.

"It's a complicated story," Ran shrugged, "… Speaking of KID, what part, if any, of the riddle has been solved?"

"My father and Hakuba-kun found out what KID and Mage are after but they still don't know when they're going to strike," Aoko explained.

"Well we should resolve this little predicament," Kasuma declared, searching her pockets, "Now where did I put it…? I _know_ I made a copy of the heist note."

"Here. I have a copy of it from my dad." Aoko offered up the slip of white paper.

"Let's see… 'The Blue Pearl will roll to us when the seven meets the eight. KID and Mage.' Sounds simple enough. Aoko-chan, what's the name of the jewel they're after?" Kasuma asked after she had read the contents aloud.

"Just like the note says, the jewel's name is 'Blue Pearl.' It's an aquamarine that belongs to the Hayashi family. They recently moved to Tokyo from Gifu and are well known for their vast collection of extravagant objects. The Pearl is the oldest item in their collection and was found twenty years ago by Hayashi Chokichi-sama, the head of the family."

"And I assume Hayashi-sama is still up and about…?" Kasuma looked at the messy-haired teen.

Aoko nodded, "He'll probably be the one bossing Tou-san around at the heist."

Kasuma smirked at the statement then crouched down to meet the level of the Shonen Tantei, "So what do _you_ think the last half of the riddle means?"

"'When the seven meets the eight' you mean?" Mitsuhiko replied, clarifying the teen's statement.

When Kasuma nodded, Mitsuhiko frowned, pondering the riddle along with Genta and Ayumi. Conan and Haibara stood off to the side, exchanging looks. Genta pouted, "I don't get it at all."

"Neither do I," Ayumi added, disappointed.

"A hint I would give you would be the numerals of a different language, but I'm certain you don't know many other languages, let alone the one I'm thinking of," Kasuma responded with a small smile.

'Numerals of a different language…?' Conan quirked an eyebrow, looking at Kasuma, 'What language could she be… O-_oh_… _that_ one.'

"Kasuma-neechan, you can't expect them to know Latin, now can you? We don't study it in school," Conan exclaimed childishly.

Kasuma returned the remark with an exaggerated pout, "No fair, Conan-kun! I wanted them to guess!"

"What does Latin have to do with the note?" Ayumi turned to Conan as she spoke.

"The Latin words for seven and eight are 'septem' and 'octo.' And if you know how the months were named by the Romans—"

Kasuma sighed and railed off the months in Latin, "Ianuarius, Februarius, Martius, Aprilis, Maius, Iunius, Iulius, Augustus, September, October, November, December."

"Uwaa! I heard it!" Genta yelled, "'Septem' in September and 'octo' in October!"

"I heard it too!" Mitsuhiko and Ayumi exclaimed simultaneously.

Conan smirked, nodding, "In other words…"

"When September meets October, KID and Mage will steal the Blue Pearl!" the three members of the Shonen Tantei answered as a group.

Conan smiled, unable to stop the feeling of pride rising within him because of the three intelligent kids in front of him. Kids who became his and Haibara's friends and whom Conan taught the basics of deduction. 'They really are good kids,' Conan thought fondly, the excited chattering of the three kids, as well as the small talk between the older teens and the music flooding in through the speakers of the mall, fading into white noise. 'They'll grow up to be great detectives; famous sleuths when they reach high school, maybe even before then. They learn _so_ quickly and they're very helpful, especially during a case. I hope they keep the Shonen Tantei after I get my old body back, that is, _if_ I even get it back.

'I wonder what Haibara's theory was? She never gave me details, just that it focuses on its creation and how it affects the consumer. And she pulled Kasuma into this, _even though_ it could only endanger her. If she really is an ally and wasn't just pulling Haibara's leg, then she could run herself through hell by involving herself in this whole ordeal. And I sincerely hope she's not helping us because she has no family left. Don't want _two_ suicidal scientists running amuck if, in fact, that _is_ how Kasuma's helping Haibara.'

Conan's thoughts and the music in the mall were cut off abruptly and a deep, gruff voice filtered in through the intercom, "Kazuki, since I'm _sure_ you're somewhere in this mall, I need you to report to me immediately."

Kasuma chuckled, "Blunt as always, aren't you Kaemon-san?"

"Was that person looking for _you_?" Ran asked, staring at the speaker closest to them. Kasuma nodded, "Then that was your boss?" Another nod, "Why use the intercom? Can't he just call your phone?"

"He uses the intercom because, unless I'm at school or at home, I'm at the mall for one reason or another… He's probably calling me in to fix one of their machines in here, or maybe relieve one of the employees. Regardless, it seems I have to go. I assume Ai-chan can make it back to the house easily enough or at least hang around with the kids or at Agasa-hakase's place." With that, Kasuma darted out of the store.

"I wonder what she's gonna do with those movies," Kaito mused, watching the teen turn a corner and disappear from sight.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan

Hayashi Estate

September 30, 8:26 PM

When Mouri, Ran, and Conan arrived at the Hayashi estate by way of taxi, they were met with a hoard of Task Force officers running about, finalizing guard posts and positions. Nakamori stood by the mansion's steps as he delivered orders to be spread throughout the large group of officers. The Inspector's daughter, Aoko, stood near him, hugging her coat closer to her body in order to protect herself from the chilly wind, "Aoko-chan!" Ran called out, running up to meet her friend.

"Ah, Ran-chan!" Aoko responded, smiling brightly, "I figured you'd be here."

"You don't usually come to heists, why tonight?" Ran asked the girl.

"Hayashi-sama is feeding everyone here and I guess Tou-san figured I might as well join so I don't have to make dinner for myself."

"_Everyone?_" Ran asked, sweeping her eyes around the grounds where a good thirty, or so, officers were stationed in front of the mansion. Not to mention the officers that were bound to be posted at the back and sides of the mansion as well.

Aoko nodded, laughing, "That was my reaction too. Their kitchen staff must be _huge_ if they're cooking for _all_ of us."

"Why are you out here in the cold, Aoko-neechan?" Conan asked the bundled up girl. "Wouldn't it be warmer inside the mansion?"

"It was way too hectic in there…" Aoko tilted her head towards the doors of the mansion, "Between the Task Force officers and servants and cooks, it's a wonder they're able to do _anything_ in there."

Just then, the doors of the mansion swung open and an elderly man of about seventy descended the steps, followed by a man and a woman. The trio made their way towards Nakamori, the older man addressing him, "Nakamori-keibu, I presume?"

Nakamori nodded, "That's me."

"Good… I'm Hayashi Chokichi and behind me are my children, Ayako and Mareo. I assume you'd like to see the Pearl, correct? I can show it to you right now."

Nakamori nodded, calling over two additional officers to accompany him, "Oh, and if Nemure no Kogoro would like to join us, then you are welcome," Chokichi added, peering at the detective, "That is, if you really _are_ Mouri Kogoro."

Nakamori finally took in Mouri, Ran, and Conan's arrival and glared at Mouri, immediately lunging for the detective's cheek and yanking down _hard_ on it. Growling, Mouri retaliated like he usually did; he reached over and pulled on _Nakamori's_ cheek as well. Before things could get more out of hand, Ran and Aoko separated their respective fathers from each other with great difficultly. Chokichi let out a hearty laugh, "Well, now that _that's_ been cleared up, shall we head inside?" Chokichi led the group inside the mansion. Upon entering the expansive estate, Conan found Aoko's statement to be true; the interior of the large house was packed with officers and mansion staff alike, everyone bustling around to complete their given tasks. Chokichi maneuvered through the great mass with little effort, his guests having a harder time squeezing through the many bodies. Once through the crowded lobby, they were led up two flights of stairs and down two hallways, finally stopping in front of a pair of doors. Chokichi extracted a key from his breast pocket and used it to unlock the doors, throwing them open when he finished. "Alright, here we are… This is where I keep my collection. The jewel is in the center over there," Chokichi extended his hand and motioned towards the center of the large room. Nakamori edged closer to the metal pedestal the jewel was resting on. The jewel itself was encased within a medium sized glass cube, the blue brilliance of the Pearl shining through the glass.

"That's an impressive looking jewel. Certainly something KID and Mage would be after. And it's only this aquamarine they're after?" Nakamori scanned the room, taking in the exotic vases, swords, paintings, and metal work around him, "Because there are many other things in this room they could target that would be of value."

"That wouldn't matter Otou-san," Aoko responded, "They always return the stuff they steal. I'm sure they just like the thrill of pulling off a heist."

The Inspector shook his head, "After twenty years of chasing KID, I could never quite figure out why he stole but it doesn't seem like a need for an adrenaline rush… he's searching for something."

"As is Mage," added a familiar, slightly foreign voice, the speaker entering through the second pair of doors leading into the collection room. Hakuba looked up at Nakamori and smirked, "Mage may not have been around for twenty years like KID but the tactics he's used for five years are too similar to KID's to be a coincidence. He's looking for something as well. And since they teamed up, it seems they're looking for the same thing."

"That would be correct, I'm certain of it," Chokichi nodded, "I was wondering if you'd come, Hakuba Saguru-san. After all… phantom thieves seem to be your specialty."

Hakuba chuckled, rubbing the back of his head slightly, "Yeah, they seem to appeal to me don't they? Well, I'd rather deal with non-violent thieves who return their targets than have to deal with a murder where there's no chance of returning the stolen life… not that I wouldn't do anything in my power to catch the culprit but…" Hakuba trailed off with a shrug, brushing his hair out of his face.

"Well, you've seen this room and my staff should be done with the dinner preparations, so shall we all convene in the dining room?" Chokichi asked, motioning towards the doors.

As they descended the stairs again to the first floor, Conan looked up at Hakuba, "Hakuba-niisan, I know how we know KID's non-violent but why do you say Mage is as well? It can't be because they're so similar."

Hakuba shook his head, "That's not why. Though I'm surprised you caught that. No one here, until you of course, has caught on to that fact. Most of the people in Japan assume Mage is non-violent because of his teaming up with KID."

"And you know for sure that Mage is non-violent?" Conan inquired.

Hakuba nodded, "Early in his career, when Mage first started stealing, the officers attending his heists always brought guns with them… just in case, since we didn't know what Mage would do. Also early on, Mage started being targeted by snipers from an unknown group. At one of his heists, Mage saved a good number of our officers when snipers opened fire." Hakuba shook his head disapprovingly, "The officers were safe, but only because Mage took the bullets." Conan's eyes widened. Hakuba caught the expression and smiled slightly, "He was wearing Kevlar and his mask is, surprisingly, bullet-proof so his vitals were protected, but some of the bullets contacted other, less protected areas. Coincidently, Mage was wearing a red suit, but blood darkens in color when it dries. That suit was _definitely_ ruined; I doubt he was able to salvage _anything_ after that heist. The sniping just continued relentlessly and, several other times, Mage took the bullets or otherwise warned or tackled the officers within range. Since it was clear after several heists about Mage's aversion to violence, the officers were requested, but not required, to leave their firearms at home or at the station. However, if any one of them opened fire on Mage, or during a heist in general, they were severely punished."

"How many times did Mage get shot that one time?" Ran asked, peering behind her to gaze at Hakuba. Aoko turned her head, curious.

Hakuba paused as he mentally counted up the number of bullets fired. "…There were several snipers at that particular heist so a lot of bullets were fired. At least nine or ten hit Mage's vest, seven grazed his arms and legs, and I think a few were lodged in fairly deep in at least one of his legs, since he had trouble getting himself up on a ledge in order to activate his glider… That's a total of at least sixteen or seventeen bullets fired, not counting the many others that were completely off the mark because of all the movement."

"And the only one injured was Mage himself?" Aoko asked, a hand over her mouth.

Hakuba nodded, "Miraculously yes, he was the only one injured. Mage didn't hold his next heist until a month or two later, so it took a while for him to recover."

"That's horrible!" Aoko exclaimed, "Even if he _is_ a thief, no one deserves to have their life threatened!"

"You know a lot about this… were you there when it happened?" Ran asked as Aoko's exclamation died down.

"Yeah. I was about twelve or thirteen. I came with my father but, even though he let me come, I had to agree that I'd stay off to the side… and thank goodness I did, especially _that_ heist. When the shooting began, I was behind a pillar by the door. I'm really glad Kasuma wasn't there, or she would have gotten caught in that as well."

'Kasuma…?' Conan quirked an eyebrow.

"Was Kasuma able to go to more of the heists in Europe than in Japan? 'Cause she keeps whining about not being able to make it to any of the more recent heists," Ran asked.

"She did… but then, she wasn't working the hours she apparently is right now, so she had more time on her hands… That is, when she wasn't moping in her room. She did a lot of that when her uncle first brought her to Europe."

"Oh yeah, Kasuma _did_ say that you and your family took her in because her house was 'rendered useless.' What happened to her house in the first place?" Ran asked, recalling a past conversation.

"It's not really my place to say," Hakuba murmured, frowning, "She's very sensitive about past events in her life… she rarely opens up to me about it, let alone my mother." 'Except that one time…' Hakuba added silently. The detective sighed, "All I can probably say is that it was an accident… and I take 'accident' with a grain of salt since there's _no way_ anyone in Kasuma's family would have screwed up _that_ badly."

"Please have a seat wherever you want," Chokichi's voice interrupted, as the elderly man swept his hand around the room they were now in. With a high-vaulted ceiling and elaborate chandelier setting the size boundaries, the expansive room opened up brightly, an extremely long table resting in the middle. Even in the dining room, the staff was busy, many of them hurrying to deliver a full-course meal to the officers stationed on all four sides of the mansion.

"Wow!" Conan exclaimed, jumping up onto a seat next to Ran's chosen spot, "There's so much food!" Conan scanned the food selections eagerly, 'They've got food from all over the world! Although… it seems to be mainly Italian… There's agnolotti, taglierini, bagna cauda, minestrone soup, spaghetti, guanciale, and much more. I think I see sate from Indonesia, bun reiu from Vietnam, coddle from Ireland, surstromming from Sweden, hangikjot from Iceland, spargel from Germany, vareniki from Russia, baklava and keskek from Turkey, birria from Mexico, caruru from Brazil, jeongol from Korea, sushi from Japan, and is that…?' Conan examined a plate of meat with garlic, soy sauce, and other liquids, 'Yep, that's adobo from the Philippines.'

Chokichi chuckled, watching Conan peruse the foods on the table, "Yes, my chefs are very skilled and know recipes from all around the world." The Hayashi family head frowned, "Now we only need to wait for a few other people so we can eat… they'd better not waste my time."

Just then, Hayashi Mareo walked in, arm slung over a woman's shoulder as they talked quietly. Chokichi growled, raising his voice to reach their ears from the opposite end of the room, "Could you two take any longer? I could be spending this precious time monitoring the collection room for KID and Mage's impending arrival, and you two are gallivanting about the premises?"

'When did he slip away from the group?' Conan thought, raking his brain for any sign of Mareo's disappearance. 'And who is this woman?'

Mareo's expression darkened briefly before he regained his composure and took a seat at the table next to the woman that accompanied him. From the conversation that broke out during dinner, it was revealed to Conan that the woman's name was Kawano Hamako and that she was engaged to Hayashi Mareo. Ran and Aoko, at that time, had congratulated the couple immensely. The reminder of the soon-to-come wedding had brought out a new side of Hayashi Chokichi, an angrier, ruder side of him, a side that didn't exactly favor the woman of his son's choice. But Mareo wasn't the only one verbally attacked by the family head. His sister, Ayako, was also scolded numerous times about her alleged withdrawal of thousands of yen from the family bank account. Therefore, when the designated arrival time neared, the guests of the Hayashi family were glad to be excused from the table in order to fully immerse themselves in heist preparation. Nakamori, accompanied by his daughter, Mouri, Ran, Conan, and two officers once again climbed two flights of stairs to examine the collection room. That task had taken about an hour of thoroughly combing the room for any abnormalities, as well as anything that the thieves could use to their advantage. Finding nothing unusual and ensuring that the windows and doors were locked, the group headed down to the second floor study that Chokichi had pointed out to them earlier.

Which was where they currently were located at five till eleven, Conan scanning the books in the study while Nakamori and many of the officers inside the room stood, or sat, tense, anticipating the arrival of the two famous phantom thieves. Ran and Aoko sat next to each other on one of the couches, chatting and Mouri tapped his foot impatiently as he leaned against a desk in the room.

Due to their location in the study, no one heard one of the windows of the collection room open slowly and no one saw the two pairs of white-clad feet step into the room. Until, that is… _CLUNK… CRASH!_

Nakamori jerked up from his seat, "What the hell was that?"

"It came from the third floor!" Conan yelled, already running out the study and up the stairs, Nakamori at his heel. Conan, given his head start, arrived at the doors before the Inspector, the officers guarding the door already fumbling for a key to open the doors. After some loud, colorful exclamations from Nakamori, the guards managed to throw the doors open and Conan and Nakamori rushed in.

The first thing they noticed was the metal pedestal that held the Blue Pearl was on its side, the glass covering the jewel shattered. Not only that, but the Blue Pearl itself was lying innocently on the floor, unharmed from the fall, with the broken glass cover surrounding it. Nakamori made to inspect it, but Conan's yell stopped him, "Don't move!"

Nakamori was about to retort until he saw what Conan was gazing at: Hayashi Chokichi lying on his stomach in between the two sets of doors, a pool of red liquid leaking from his body. Conan bent down and placed two fingers against the man's neck, feeling for a pulse. Just then, the other members of the Hayashi family, as well as their guests entered the room. One of the women took in the sight of Chokichi lying on the floor and screamed. Conan gritted his teeth, "Call the police!"

Nakamori growled, "I _am_ the police!"

"I mean _Division One_," Conan hissed.

Hissing himself, Nakamori turned to one of the officers and ordered him to 'contact Megure goddammit!'

Conan stood up and scanned the room, searching for any changes in layout or position. Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Conan looked up and walked towards the open window, 'Those were closed and locked when we came in an hour ago.' Conan ran his eyes along the ground, looking for something that may provide a clue. His eye was drawn to something gold shining to his right and the boy headed towards it. Just as he approached it and identified it as a dagger, he faintly heard someone… male, he discerned, say "H-he was stabbed…?"

Conan pulled out a white handkerchief and picked up the dagger, 'This must have been the murder weapon. But what's it doing all the way over here?' Conan thought, returning the weapon and examining the tall counter that blocked his view of the corpse. Another glimmer of light caught his eye and he rapidly moved towards it. Hakuba and Nakamori had seemingly noticed something in the same direction, and they were near Conan as he used the handkerchief to first cover the item of interest before he picked the entire thing up. Flipping it around so Conan could see the object more clearly, he and Hakuba and Nakamori behind him were shocked to find out that the object was, in fact, "KID's card gun," Hakuba murmured quietly.

'Don't tell me that he…?' Conan turned his head to stare at Chokichi's body on the other side of the room, Hakuba and Nakamori mimicking the action.

**Final Notes: Some of you may have noticed a change in address for some people like Kasuma's change from Nakamori-san to Aoko-chan or her change from Kuroba-kun to Kaito. Regarding that I want to note that a month or so has passed since that first encounter so the names morphed into something else (less formal in Kasuma's case)**

**Wow… lots of foods… the searching made me hungry.. I hope I got the spelling/food names correct (don't fail me now Wikipedia)**

**And I am in no way affiliated with the movie ****Push**** or anyone regarding it. I haven't even seen it yet so don't start whining please. I also have nothing to do with ****Aresne Lupin****.**

**And because a lot of you won't know what they mean, here are the translations for the foreign statements (nixing the Latin profanity—as I mentioned in the Warnings).**

**French**

**Vous préférez donc les ****voleurs ****au lieu ****des détectives****? **(So you prefer thieves over detectives?)

**Ouais****. ****Lupin ****est beaucoup ****mieux que ****Holmes****. **(Yeah. Lupin is much better than Holmes.)

**Je ne le croix pas. Poirot peut lattre Holmes et Lupin, deux mains vers le bas. **(I beg to differ. Poirot beats both Holmes and Lupin without a doubt.)

**Poirot ****et ****Holmes **_**combiné **_**ne pouraient pas ****attraper****Lupin****! **(Poirot and Holmes _combined_ could not catch Lupin!)

**Dans****tes rêves****, **_**Magicien**_**. **(In your dreams, _Magician_.)

**Vous****ne l'avez pas ****vu****?****Honte à ****vous****! ****Je ****l'ai ****regardé****, même ****si ****je ****n'aime pas ****Lupin****. **(You haven't seen it? Shame on you! I've watched it even though I don't like Lupin.)

**Cela**** la ****règle****, donne-moi ****cela. ****Je l'acheter ****pour vous****. **(That settles it, give me that. I'm buying it for you.)

**Attendez****! ****Ne****vous avisez pas****! **(Wait! Don't you dare!)

**Tagalog/Visayan**** (this is the good thing about having a Filipino mom… she can give you the correct translation **)**

**Dito, gusto kung bilhin itong dalawang. **(Here, I want to buy these two.)

**Oo, padolong ng. **(Yes, coming up.)

**Salamat. **(Thanks.)

**_. Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "What I don't get is why KID would drop his card gun as he was fleeing."_**


	13. Extra: The First Heist

**A/N: And we jump into another Extra set about a year after Kasuma has moved in with the Hakubas. Or maybe I should say… *clears throat* Ladies and Gentlemen! I present to you… The Birth of Masked Magician! (in other words, Mage's very first heist!... Hence the name of this Extra) As to the reason I'm posting this Extra… that would be because it's been a year since I started this story (I'm not as far into it as I'd like to be but that's alright… things come up and such *shrug*) Enjoy! (Since its Spring Break for me, I'm using this time to try and get ahead with my story. I have a chapter ready and waiting to be posted but Cai-chan needs to look at it first so expect another update sometime next week)

* * *

**

Extra: The First Heist

* * *

Yawning, Hakuba Saguru stumbled out of his room, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he clambered down the stairs and into the kitchen. He looked up to find his mother Helen at the stove, preparing scrambled eggs while popping a plate filled with bacon into the microwave and setting the timer. She paused to look at her son and smiled. "Saguru, can you please set the table… only two places are necessary."

"Why two? Isn't Kasuma going to be down here soon?" Hakuba asked groggily.

Helen sighed, "Probably not. You've noticed her actions lately I'm sure. She's been locking herself up in her room. I can't do anything to get her out… Poor girl, she's still probably grieving over the loss of her family. She'll only leave her room for school nowadays."

"That's not true." Another voice spoke up. Helen perked up and looked for the source of the voice. Her eyes fell on Takashi Kasuma, now Kazuki Kasuma, who was pulling her brown locks up into a ponytail. "I _do_ come out for meals."

"That's not good, child. I'm sure you've made friends, why don't you ever hang out with them?" Helen questioned.

"If by friends, you mean Hakuba or our class pet then yes, I do have friends." Helen shot a disapproving gaze. "But really, it's not like my classmates are gonna warm up to the 'weird Asian transfer student' any time soon."

"Kasuma!" Helen paused in her cooking, "Don't think like that! You need to be more assertive. Take action."

"No, its fine Helen. I'm fine with just lurking in the background. I've been doing it for a while, it's no big deal." Kasuma took a seat at the table and rested her head in her hands, "Oh yeah. Where's Hakuba-san?"

"Oh, well he had to go to work early. It seems someone sent a weird letter to Headquarters and they called him in to take a look at it. I'm not sure what's going on but he seemed really tense when he left." Helen moved the finished eggs to a plate and put them on the table, followed by the plate of now cooked bacon. "Alright, dig in kids! Is there anything you two want to drink?"

"Juice." Was the reply both thirteen year olds gave.

* * *

"Damn punk trying to annoy the police force!" Police Chief Hakuba Kouhei mumbled as he loosened his tie and crumpled the small white piece of paper in his hand into a ball and chucked it to the stairs. Kasuma, who was just about to ascend the stairs, bent down to pick up the ball and opened it carefully. She looked at the contents before turning to the elder Hakuba. "Hakuba-san… what is this?"

"Who knows? It's probably just a prank some punk tried to pull." The Police Chief answered, removing his shoes and replacing them for slippers.

Hakuba joined Kasuma at the foot of the stairs and looked over her shoulder to read the contents as well, "Otou-san, I don't think 'some punk' would bother to turn this into a riddle."

"I know that Saguru." Kouhei sighed, massaging his forehead, "That's already been pointed out, we're not taking it lightly but we don't know what _it_ is!"

"Hey, I think this second line says something about arriving at nine 'o clock to take… 'a blue heart'?" Hakuba pointed to said line and looked at his father, "Otou-san… wasn't there someone who worked like this? I mean, I might be mistaken… I think I was pretty young…" Hakuba trailed off.

"Come to think about it, there was." Kouhei mumbled, "That was Kaitou 1412 but… he hasn't shown up in.." he counted his fingers. "Five years. Is it him? I thought he was dead."

"Kaitou 1412? That was that thief that was stealing artworks and jewels right?" Kasuma questioned, "I heard about some of his heists back in America although… he was a little more active here so I didn't hear much. If I remember correctly, he's the gentleman phantom thief that wears all white. And some young writer misread 1412 as K.I.D. and he's been called that ever since."

"Well it's good to know that the reporters in America aren't receiving false information. Yes, that's the guy. He's been a pain in the ass but… it seems he's just stopped. If this _is_ KID, then he's well… so to speak, 'Back in Business.'"

"Well I guess it's good that this riddle isn't too complex. We already know the time and target. All that's left is the location." Hakuba flipped the wrinkled note around in his hand then held it up to the light.

Kasuma raised an eyebrow, "What are you doing Hakuba?"

"Well if it's KID, there should be a signature. It's not at the end of the note so maybe there's a water mark or maybe he used invisible ink."

"You probably wouldn't have been able to confirm that if this note is a copy." Kasuma replied. She looked at Kouhei for a confirmation.

Kouhei shook his head, "No, it's the original."

"Hmm, I think this line means he's gonna show up at the museum across town… tonight." Hakuba mused, studying the note again. "Kasuma, can I borrow your computer?" Kasuma nodded slowly and ascended the stairs, Hakuba following her closely. Kasuma entered her room and moved her laptop from her bed to the desk adjacent to the purple piece of furniture. She then took a seat on the edge of her bed and let Hakuba approach the desk, ridding the screen of the screensaver. He paused, "Did you draw that Kasuma?"

"What the wallpaper? Yeah. It's a picture of one of the houses in my old neighborhood… in Japan, I mean. It looked so odd that I felt like sketching it out. We didn't know them personally, just someone we would see in passing I guess. I didn't include the nameplate but I think it said… Agasa? Or maybe it was Eto? I can't remember but I wouldn't be surprised if I got those two names flipped around or something. Those two houses were right next to each other." Kasuma shrugged, "Anyway… aren't you straying from the problem?"

"Uh, right." Hakuba pulled up the Internet and searched the name of the museum he had in mind. He then found his way to the museum's website and searched through the galleries and the items in each different gallery. "Where's Otou-san?"

"I think he went to his room to put away his equipment." Kasuma stated. "Did you find something?"

"Yeah, I think this is the target here. The Crying Heart." Kasuma's expression seemed to say 'What made you think that?' Hakuba explained himself, "'Blue' also sometimes means 'sad' or 'down' and there's no other item in the museum with 'heart' in its name except this jewel. I also want to know why the note was written in Japanese instead of English."

"Hmm… you _do_ realize you father's not going to let see this thing through?"

"Of course I won't." Kouhei walked in. "That deduction seems right and I appreciate your help in solving the note but I'm not letting you go to that heist. And your mother would scold both you and me about allowing you attend such an event. 'Especially on a school night!' she would say. I guess this should be reported to the station and they can get men stationed at the museum. I suggest you two finish your homework."

* * *

A burst of white smoke drew the attention of all the officers within the jewel gallery to the stand that held the Crying Heart. When the smoke cleared, all the eyes of the officers were drawn to the figure dressed in white, perched upon the stand with a top hat twirling around on his (or her) finger. The figure didn't put it on and instead opened the case and dropped the jewel into the hat and making it disappear with a flick of the wrist. "Oi!" Kouhei began in Japanese, "What the heck do you think you're doing?"

"**Police Chief Hakuba,"** the figure drawled in English, **"I understand English. That would make my stay here fairly miserable if I didn't. As to what I'm doing? I'm borrowing this diamond right here."** The figure motioned to the now empty jewel case that held the Crying Heart.

"**Maybe I should have rephrased my question. Who are you?"** Kouhei replied in English.

"**Oh right. This is my first time in the business… you don't know who I am. How rude of me. I call myself Masked Magician… hence the mask."** The figure, Masked Magician, pointed to his mask. **"I hope I can entertain you all while I'm here. And before you jump to any conclusions let me clarify myself… I am, in no way, connected to Kaitou 1412. Never knew the guy, although he **_**has**_** inspired me to take up this career. Alright, now that that's clear, I fear I must leave."** The room was filled with smoke. The officers on the perimeter of the room moved to open the windows and let the smoke out. When the smoke cleared out, the thief was nowhere in sight.

They later found out that an officer was knocked out and tied up in the men's restroom and that his police uniform was nowhere to be found. Two days later, under a full moon, the Crying Heart was discovered on the rooftop of the museum owner's house, perched on the edge of the house's chimney.

**Final Notes: Okay, so I didn't actually put the heist note riddle in here because frankly… I didn't come up with one (I feel the future heist notes are the more important ones and the ones I should be focusing on, not the content of the heists Mage has already pulled off… don't you agree?) Police Chief Hakuba's first name isn't given in the manga/anime so I made one up. Kouhei means 'justice' so I thought it would fit just fine.**


	14. Solve the Murder (11)

**A/N: Part five of the Pandora Arc!**

**Warnings: Zodiacs… and secrets..**

**Acknowledgements: Cai-chan! And DCMonkey4EVR for listening… even though she ends up falling asleep before I can finish reading…**

**Other (possibly irrelevant): Whew… they solve the murder today, thank goodness… And next chapter will be… fun (let's just say secrets are revealed)**

**Today's quote is: "'Why are you looking at me? Pay attention to the person hitting you!' That is my life lesson." –Morgan B.**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Solve the Murder!

* * *

Beika, Japan

Agasa Residence

October 1, 7:24 AM

'Tantei-kun,

By now you probably know who this is from so I'll cut to the chase. For the moment, meaning before our next heist note arrives, consider us clients. You probably already have doubts about our involvement in this recent murder and I … no, _we_ ask you to seek out the truth behind this horrendous crime. Also by now, I believe there are two other detectives of the same age, your _real_ age, in the Tokyo/Beika area thoroughly looking into the case. You, I'm sure, have already become acquainted with them and I ask you to assist them and crack this new crime. Those two, both of which are very familiar with the workings of myself and Kaitou KID for the sole reason of chasing us down (well… _attempting_ to chase us down) for God knows how many years, are probably already at the crime scene (if my own 'detective' abilities are having a good day), I'm sure you will be a great help. Somehow, I _will_ repay you. I don't know_ how,_ but it _will_ happen.

Arigato, Koko-sei Tantei Kudo Shinichi,

Double-M

P.S. KID asks, from the bottom of his heart, that you retrieve his card gun after this whole ordeal.

'Oi, oi,' Conan thought, folding up the letter and slipping it into his pocket, 'He's acting as if we're friends… instead of the enemies we really are. At least he took precautions,' Conan flipped the envelope over in order to read the name on the front, 'He may have addressed me by my real name in the letter but I'm glad he wrote 'Edogawa Conan' on the envelope. I wonder how much of my situation Mage knows.' Conan grabbed a hold of his solar-powered skateboard and called out to Agasa, "Hakase, I'm heading over to the crime scene! Occhan and Ran are already over there!"

"Ah, Shinichi! Wait, don't forget your bowtie!" the portly inventor called out, holding out the red bowtie to Conan, who took it gratefully.

"Arigato, Hakase. Ja ne!" Conan ran out of Agasa's house and powered up his skateboard. To pass the time as he zoomed towards the Hayashi estate, Conan pondered the case and focused in on the strange items or events that had happened the previous night. 'Hayashi-sama's body was lying between the two sets of doors with a fatal wound caused by a dagger. The dagger in question was found behind the counter, next to the window on the far left. Across the room, in front of the other window was KID's card gun. In the center of the room, the pedestal had been knocked over but the jewel itself hadn't been taken. It seems to point at the thieves, but they both are non-violent and have been known to put others before themselves when it came to safety. Mage always took the bullets for an officer that happened to be in the bullet's path, though he always wears a bullet-proof vest and was never injured too severely. Not to mention KID, who had also saved some lives before. KID even jumped off that building to try and catch me when I had fallen off, even though I planned that.

'There were a few strange points about the crime scene. First, Hayashi-sama's key-holder was right underneath the window by the murder weapon. And second, the police arrived far too quickly. When I asked Takagi-keiji about their speedy arrival, he said they had received a call a few minutes before that Task Force officer called. The curious factors would be why Hayashi-sama's key-holder was clear on the other side of the room and who called the police minutes before we called? As well as KID's card gun being left at the scene. There's no way KID wouldn't notice his card gun dropping, so why was it by the window? It's possible that KID was frantic to get out and therefore didn't notice the gun falling, but KID's good at keeping his composure and he has seen crime scenes before, so why would _this_ one shake him up so badly that he left such incriminating evidence? I _know_ Nakamori doesn't believe that KID… or Mage, for that matter, would ever take a life, but some of the Hayashi family members aren't convinced. They may be thieves but they don't steal lives. If anything, they preserve them… as best as they can.' The Hayashi estate approached and Conan began decelerating, slowing down to a crawl before kicking the skateboard up, only to grab it around the middle and run the rest of the way to the mansion. Conan ran through the open door and ascended the stairs in order to reach the third floor collection room.

Mouri and Ran were already inside, Ran standing by the doors as Mouri walked around the room with Megure floating nearby him. Conan tugged lightly on Ran's shirt, "Ran-neechan."

Ran looked down, "Conan-kun! I thought you wanted to go to Agasa-hakase's house."

"I did," Conan affirmed, "But I also wanted to come here…"

Ran smiled fondly, "And investigate the scene? You're just like Shinichi."

Conan laughed quietly, 'That's because I _am_ Shinichi.'

It was then that Mouri bounded over to Conan and pounded the boy's head yelling, "You'd better not get in the way, brat!"

"Ara, Conan-kun! And Ran-san, I didn't expect you see you two here," fluttered in a very familiar voice. Conan turned and saw Kasuma standing outside the room, wide-eyed.

"Kasuma!" Ran exclaimed, turning to face the teen, "What are you doing here?"

"I heard about the murder and came to clear KID and Mage's name… since people here seem to be blaming them for this," Kasuma answered, stuffing her hands in her pockets.

"How did you hear of the murder? The police haven't released any information," Conan asked, peering up at the girl.

"Ah, that would be because of me," Hakuba answered as he appeared and stood next to Kasuma, "Kasuma loves coming to crime scenes so I thought I'd let her know about this one. Although… I'm kinda worried about you on that factor."

"Worry not, Hakuba," Kasuma beamed, swiveling on her heels, "Now I'm going to search the remaining areas we didn't cover yet… are you joining me Hakuba?"

Hakuba nodded and continued down the hall, "Wait! I wanna come too!" Conan called after them. Kasuma stopped and faced Conan as he ran to meet up with the two teenage detectives.

It was quiet until Hakuba opened the door to a neighboring room and the trio walked in. Inside the room, which turned out to be a bedroom, Hakuba addressed his childhood friend, "You mentioned something about a letter earlier? What did it say?"

"Oh right," Kasuma dug through her pocket and pulled out a white sheet of paper. She cleared her throat and read the letter aloud, "'Tantei-chan,

By now you probably know who this is from so I'll cut to the chase. There has been a murder at our most recent heist and, unfortunately, the blame has been pinned onto us. For the meantime, I would like to call a truce… at least until this murder has been solved. This case will have already attracted the attention of other detectives in the area so, I pray, this incident will be cleared up quickly. KID and I ask you to assist the police and/or detectives in order to solve this murder. We greatly appreciate it.

Double-M

P.S. KID's card gun is somewhere in the mansion, I'm sure of it. He would like it back as it is his favorite one.'"

'It's shaped similarly to mine,' Conan thought as Kasuma finished reading the letter.

"Hmm, that's almost _exactly_ how mine was phrased," Hakuba murmured as he mulled over the contents.

"You were addressed as 'Tantei-chan.' Why is that, Kasuma-neechan?" Conan inquired.

"At my first Kaitou KID heist, that was what KID dubbed me when we encountered each other on the rooftop. KID must have passed the nickname onto Mage."

"Well at least Mage now has a name to address you with… Cause you certainly wouldn't have appreciated it if Mage called you Holmes like he does me."

"I wouldn't appreciate it if he called me _anything_ relating to Holmes, period," Kasuma exclaimed, crossing her arms. "Anyway," Kasuma opened a drawer and looked inside, "It doesn't seem like this room has anything significant in it. Shall we move to the next one?"

After Hakuba scanned the room, he exited with Kasuma and Conan behind him, the chibified detective noticing gloves on both their hands, 'Did they always have those on…? I hadn't noticed.' After a while of searching and, frustratingly, finding nothing, the three detectives found themselves on the flat balcony above the crime scene. With the tiled roof being a few feet above, Kasuma leapt up onto said roof and looked around from where she now stood.

Hakuba shook his head and looked up—because that's what he had to do to meet her eyes—in order to say, "I would tell you that you could fall, but considering whom I'm talking to, you probably won't."

Kasuma smirked, "Maybe I should fall just to disprove your statement."

"Please don't," Hakuba answered simply, scanning the balcony for anything unusual.

"Aa re re? It looks like something was here," Conan piped up, causing Hakuba to run towards Conan and Kasuma to jump down from her perch to join him as well.

"You're right," Hakuba murmured, "It looks like something was tied to the railing."

"Maybe fishing line? I think I saw some rods in one of the rooms," Kasuma offered, looking past the railing at the ground below, "Hakuba… open that window down there please."

"What are you on abou—" Hakuba cut himself off as Kasuma leapt over the railing and perched herself on the other side of the railing, "Shit, Kasuma, what the hell are you doing?"

"I told you to open the window, did I not?" Kasuma shot back, bracing herself on the railing as she started at aforementioned window. Cursing in English, Hakuba ran down the stairs and, a few minutes later, threw open the window Kasuma was above. Kasuma, sliding herself down so her feet could contact the window ledge, carefully repositioned her hands so she could swing and propel herself through the window, landing lightly on her feet. After a second or two, Kasuma stood and, not surprisingly, found herself inside the collection room.

"I swear… you're a friggin' _monkey!_" Hakuba exclaimed, massaging his temples.

"Not a monkey but a… actually I _am_ a monkey. How ironic," Kasuma grinned as Hakuba's hand contacted his forehead.

"Of all the…" Hakuba began muttering before he remembered the situation, "But Kasuma, just because you—with gymnastics experience, I might add—can make that leap, doesn't mean the culprit could."

"I'm not suggesting that," Kasuma shrugged, "Even with my gymnastics background, I didn't really need that to launch myself through the window. The distance was close enough that I could reach the window ledge by hanging off the bottom of the railing. The balcony isn't that far away from the window… three feet or so, I gather."

"Kasuma, we're in Japan. And here we don't use the weird American System," Hakuba deadpanned.

"Fine, fine, but _I'm _not gonna convert. If you'd like to, then be my guest," Kasuma answered, her arm sweeping across her body with a flourish.

"Three feet, you say?" Sato asked, approaching the teens.

"That's about one meter!" Conan offered helpfully, having just arrived from the balcony.

Sato smiled down at the boy, "I thought you'd be here, Conan-kun. Since Mouri-san and Ran-chan are here."

Conan nodded happily, "I've been with Kasuma-neechan and Hakuba-niisan! Ah!" Conan exclaimed, "That reminds me, we found something strange on the balcony."

"Right," Kasuma replied, looking up at the ceiling where the balcony was, "We found something that seems to have been evidence of a string or thread of some sort above the window behind me."

"Is that true?" Megure asked, bounding over to the teenagers. Megure paused briefly as he took in the speaker's appearance, "Uh… have we met?"

"Very briefly, I believe. I was walking the grounds of that mansion a while back… someone Aruku, I think it was."

"Ah yes… and… what's your name?" Megure inquired sheepishly.

Kasuma nodded, "Kazuki Kasuma."

"Kazuki… as in that small, rich family…?"

"No, no, no, no," Kasuma shook her head, "My relatives, at least on my mom's side, are dead… Anyway, Keibu, you should see the balcony."

* * *

Atop the balcony, the forensics team was examining the markings on the railing as well as the balcony itself. Megure, after taking a look around the open space, went back down to the crime scene, most likely to inform Mouri of the new find. Conan hung around the balcony, slowly pacing the perimeter of the area, pondering all the facts. On the roof, nearby the edge of the mansion where the windows to the collection room sat, Kasuma was seated, Hakuba also somehow managing to join her. The two of them talked in hushed tones. "It would be easy for the culprit to get down to that window in front of us," Kasuma was saying, nodding her head towards the window she had launched herself through, "But I can't say the same thing for the window below us." Kasuma peered down the length of the estate, examining the window where KID's card gun had been found. "If we're talking about KID or Mage, they could make it down there, but we're assuming KID and Mage didn't commit the crime."

Hakuba nodded in agreement, "The difference between the estimated time of death and the time we heard the crash doesn't match up. We heard the crash at exactly 11:01:15 and the estimated time of death is 10:50:00."

Kasuma was soon distracted as a hawk came to rest on the roof. "Watson! You brought her!"

Hakuba smiled, petting the hawk's feathers gently, "Yeah, I figured she'd be helpful so I let her come with me… she's been flying around searching for anything useful…" Hakuba paused as Watson made her way over to Kasuma and began butting her head against the teen. "She remembers you."

Kasuma laughed briefly, "Hi pretty girl, I remember you too… it's been a while hasn't it?" Kasuma began stroking the bird's brown feathers.

"Anyway… Before Watson distracted me, I was going to say that that's a difference of eleven minutes," Kasuma said, looking down at Watson briefly. "From what you told me, after dinner ended at around nine thirty, you, the Mouris, Conan, Nakamori-keibu, and some other officers had gone up to the collection room to do one last look-over. That lasted about an hour; therefore you were in the study on the second floor from ten thirty to eleven. If I'm not mistaken, Conan-kun had run up to the collection room with Nakamori-keibu, and everyone else followed him. There the body was discovered and a few minutes later, Ayako-san, Mareo-san, Hamako-san, and some of the staff arrived… Ayako-san screamed when she saw the body."

"That would be correct," Hakuba nodded. "But there's something that happened after that that I can't seem to recall… someone said something strange, but I can't remember what it was."

"If we were to retrace those eleven minutes then the culprit and the victim, most likely, entered the collection room for reasons not yet known, maybe had a quarrel of some sort, then the victim was killed and the culprit left. The weapon was by the window on the right so they may have done something there; maybe they looked through the cabinet drawers or maybe looked for an alternate escape route since the Task Force would have been stationed outside the doors.

"Let's assume, for the sake of my explanation, that KID and Mage followed through on their vow that 'no one gets hurt'." Kasuma continued, "If the time of death is correct, then that means the victim was already dead when KID and Mage were planning to enter. And if they left the way they entered, they broke in through the window by the desk. Because the victim died eleven minutes before the thieves arrived, the shattering of the glass case around the gem occurred after the murder. Even if there was a struggle, it didn't seem to migrate over to the center of the room where the case was placed. Now if, when the thieves entered and advanced towards the stand, they discovered the body, then one of them must have accidently tipped over the case in their haste to flee the room. It seems, when the police were called after the body was found by Nakamori-kebu and the others, there had already been a call to the police a few minutes earlier. The call must have been made by one of the thieves when they discovered the body."

"Yeah, that _would_ explain why the police got here so soon," Hakuba mused. "You've been thinking about this very carefully it seems."

"Right." Kasuma smiled, "Although, that's all a theory, I can't be sure that's what really happened. What I don't get is why KID would drop his card gun as he was fleeing. He's not the careless type."

"That's what I'm stuck on as well," Hakuba agreed. "I don't see any reason for him to just _leave_ it there…"

Kasuma and Hakuba froze simultaneously, giving each other knowing glances before they both jumped down, causing Watson to take to the air, as well as startling Conan who was just passing by them, and ran down the stairs to the collection room. Curious, Conan followed. Inside the room, the two teenagers ran straight to the window on the far left, Kasuma running her finger over the tape that marked the position of KID's card gun, Hakuba examining the window the gun was by. "Why draw attention to the window… KID what were you thinking?" Kasuma mumbled as she straightened and scanned the area.

"'_Draw_ attention to the window'? What do you mean, Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked, peering up at her.

"Well, I think we can safely say that KID doesn't do things without reason, so the fact that he 'forgot' to reclaim his card gun should have some other meaning. There's no way he'd be so careless as to leave his card gun at a crime scene, let alone a regular heist. So therefore, the question would be why did KID leave his card gun? If he wanted to point out the murder victim, he could have just placed it by the victim, yet he put on the other side of the room by the window."

"So you're saying KID wanted to tell us that something happened that had to do with the window?" Conan concluded.

"I _think_ so," Kasuma murmured, trailing a hand over the window sill, "But what's so important about this window…? Other than the fact that KID and Mage came, and/or left, through this window... he can't be referring to the culprit's escape route… unless our Murderer-san had a grappling hook."

'Grappling hook…?' Conan's eyes flickered over to the other window before he revisited a recent memory, realization striking him. Suddenly, Conan grabbed Kasuma's wrist, "Kasuma-neechan, over here!" The teen-turned-boy led the girl over to the other window. That task done, Conan ran over to Takagi and whispered in his ear, the officer nodding every once in a while. "Arigato Takagi-keiji!" Conan called out as Takagi walked over to another officer and whispered in his ear. The officer, Tome, nodded and grabbed a plastic bag, walking over the Conan.

"You wanted to see this Conan-kun?" Tome asked, extending the bag towards Conan.

Conan nodded, grabbing his handkerchief and opening the bag to extract the item inside. "I'll bring it back right away, arigato Tome-san!" Before Tome even had a chance to respond, Conan bounded back over to Kasuma and held out the item to her, "Here. Can you test to see if this can reach the balcony?"

Kasuma raised an eyebrow but accepted the item—handkerchief and all—swiftly just as Hakuba approached them. Kasuma unfolded the white fabric and took in a sharp breath, "Kore wa…"

"Test it out please," Conan asked again.

Kasuma nodded once, then asked Hakuba to hold onto one end of the item. After doing so, Kasuma climbed out the window and carefully grabbed hold of the bottom of the balcony railing, extending the key chain above her head, the metal cord jerking to a stop a few centimeters below the balcony. Satisfied, Kasuma crawled back through the window, landing safely inside the room, accepting the end of the key chain Hakuba was holding. "A few centimeters short but with some fishing line, it can be connected to the railing…" In a lower voice, Kasuma whispered, "I think we just found our murder trick."

Conan nodded, smirking. 'That's right… we have the trick but anyone could have done it. We need to narrow it down… Come to think of it… that person said something weird earlier… does that mean that person…?'

"Ah kusou, why didn't I notice it before?" Kasuma suddenly exclaimed, slapping her forehead, "I have photographic memory, yet I let _that_ slip?"

"K-kasuma-neechan…?" Conan questioned, raising an eyebrow at Kasuma, "What are you talking about?"

"I even asked around about it, but I _still_ forgot!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" This question, said by Hakuba, finally drew Kasuma's attention. She edged closer and whispered in his ear, Conan desperately trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

Hakuba seemingly came to a realization and he smirked, "I hope that becomes our conclusive evidence."

"I think it will," Kasuma nodded, "We just need to gather everyone."

"_Neee_," Conan whined, "What's this 'conclusive evidence' you're talking about?" Kasuma blinked before she smiled and knelt, whispering exactly what she said to Hakuba to Conan. Conan's eyes widened and he too smirked.

"Make sure you tell Mouri-san this too, ne?" Kasuma murmured before she stood. Conan ran off, with the intention of 'telling Mouri-san' right away. After Conan exited the room, Kasuma walked over to Takagi, "Can I ask you to help set up the trick?"

Takagi's eyes widened, "You mean… you've figured it out?"

Kasuma smirked and nodded. She whispered the setup plans to the officer, Takagi calling the rest of the officers in the room to help him out. Kasuma then returned to Hakuba, who was by the window, and talked quietly with him just as Conan returned, dragging a loudly protesting Mouri with him. "Oji-san, I think I found something! Come here, come here!"

"You brat, dragging me around for stupid reasons… what the hell is so important?"

Conan's voice lowered drastically, "Ano ne…" Suddenly, Mouri began wobbling around the room uttering nonsensical phrases and gibberish. Conan grabbed a chair and rolled it over to the detective just in time to neatly catch him, his head sloping downwards with hands folded across his knees. Conan placed a tiny speaker on the inside of Mouri's collar then asked an officer who had entered to gather everyone into the room.

When the Hayashi family, as well as some staff members, entered the room, they were met with the sight of Mouri sitting in a chair, Kasuma and Hakuba leaning against the counter. Conan, unseen, was sitting behind one of the display cases in the room, this _particular_ case showing off several pieces of jewelry. "Why are you calling us all here?" Mareo exclaimed, "KID and Mage did this right?"

"Indeed," began Conan in Mouri's voice, "It _does_ seem that way. But that's not the case. KID and Mage hadn't even stepped into the room when the culprit committed their crime. But it seems, however, that one of them called the police. Now why would someone call attention to a crime they've committed? Well, that's a moot point as KID and Mage do that anyway, but that's beside the point. Someone else came in beforehand and stabbed Hayashi-sama, then performed this up-coming trick. Conan-kun told me that one of the detective wannabe's next to me had someone set up the trick in question."

"'Detective wannabe' my ass… how rude," Kasuma huffed pushing herself off of the counter. "Insults disregarded, yes… I had Takagi-keiji and some other officers set up the trick to make this a locked room… though technically it's not." Kasuma moved behind Mouri and knocked on the wall in several places before pausing to say, "If I recall from previous conversations with the Hayashi family and staff, several rooms have hidden passageways to ensure quick escape in case something arose. The murderer utilized this factor and…" Kasuma put pressure against a certain area of the wall. The area around her hand gave way and opened up to a secret passageway, "Gave themself an escape route. First of course…"

"They removed the key to this room and attached the actual key chain to the top of the window," Hakuba continued, motioning to the window he was now standing by. He removed the key chain and held it out for the room occupants to see. "This particular key chain is retractable, made this way so it would be easier to open doors and such without having to remove the key chain itself." Hakuba replaced the key chain to the hook it had been attached to previously. Kasuma walked over to the window as Hakuba continued, "Outside the window is some fishing line slightly longer than one meter that we tied to the balcony railing. On the other end of the line is a metal s-hook that the culprit used to attach the key ring." Kasuma carefully did just that, slipping back inside when she was finished.

"When finished with that," Hakuba continued, "Keep the window opened and raise this Catch Flex Elbow Window Latch and make sure it _stays_ raised. Then simply leave the room via hidden passage and go to the balcony. Once through the passageway, lock the second to last door—the only one that has a lock—and you'll find yourself in one of the third floor hallways." Kasuma left and did as Hakuba mentioned.

Conan, via bowtie, picked it up, "From the hallway, unnoticed by the officers guarding the collection room, the culprit took the stairs up to the balcony and, using the fishing line that it was attached to, guided the key chain up towards them."

"It doesn't quite reach," floated Kasuma's voice from the balcony, "But if you lay on your stomach, you can easily grab the keys in order to add on the key to the collection room. Then simply detach the key chain from the s-hook and let the wire reel the keys back in." Kasuma let go of the keys and, just like she said, the wire drew the keys inside the collection room, the resulting momentum causing the key chain to jump off the hook and land on the floor between the window and counter.

"Next comes the window." The room's occupants looked over at Mouri, who had spoken next, "By climbing over the railing and extending a foot down towards the open window you can, with enough force, shut the window so that you force the window latch to clamp down and do its job: locking the window." Up on the balcony, already in position on the other side of the railing, Kasuma lowered her right foot and kicked the window. The window swung inward, the sudden contact causing the latch to lower and fasten, locking the window. Hakuba applied pressure to the window to prove that, indeed, the window was locked. A minute or two later Kasuma reappeared, walking into the collection room by way of door.

"So," Megure started, "We know the trick, but who is the culprit?"

"This trick…" Conan said, "Could have been utilized by anyone."

"Oi, oi," Megure drawled, "Don't tell me you haven't figured it out yet?"

"Don't worry," Kasuma answered, "We've figured it out."

"And the culprit is none other than Hayashi Mareo!" Hakuba exclaimed.

"W-what?" stammered the accused, "I didn't kill my father!"

"I'm sorry, but you did," Kasuma shook her head, "Whether you knew it or not."

"You gave yourself away last night in fact," Mouri's voice pointed out, "Let me ask you, how did you know Hayashi-sama had been stabbed?"

"I-I saw the wound on my father," Mareo answered, trying to defend himself.

"Really?" Kasuma asked, skeptical, "I wasn't even there and I recall seeing Hayashi-sama lying on his stomach… thanks to the pictures the police took. And you know what they say: 'Pictures are worth a thousand words.'"

"N-n-no, it was the weapon I saw… I saw the knife lying on the ground," Mareo tried again.

"Doubtful," Kasuma retorted. She turned to Hakuba and tossed something to him. "Please put that on the marked spot of the weapon, if you would, Hakuba." Hakuba nodded and set KID's card gun on top of the area specified. Kasuma walked calmly towards the door. "From what I gather, everyone entered from this door, the door on the right side of the room. Hakuba just put the card gun in the exact position the weapon was in. KID's gun is about the right length of the true weapon so it's a pretty accurate size. From my view by the door, there's no way I can see the murder weapon. However, Mareo-san, if you're clairvoyant and just haven't told anyone then I can understand. But given the fact that people don't usually gain the ability to see through things or abilities of similar stature, I'll take a stab at it and say that you most definitely do _not_ have clairvoyance."

"T-that's all conjecture! You can't say for certain just from that that I'm the culprit!"

"You're right," Hakuba replied, "But we do have something _else_ against you… a little something that went missing."

"Let's just say that during dinner, Hayashi-sama had his expensive looking necktie pin on, but after dinner, rather after the crash in this room, he no longer had it," Mouri took over, "Now where could that have gone? Because it certainly didn't grow legs and walk away, that I'm sure of."

"The answer," Hakuba began again, "Would be that the culprit must have it on him. When Kasuma and I searched the house afterwards, we found no such necktie pin in the entirety of the house… and believe me when I say that Kasuma over here," Hakuba jabbed a finger in Kasuma's direction, "Is an avid hide-and-seek fan. If _she_ can't find it, then it must not have been there… leading to one conclusion…"

"The culprit has it on him," Kasuma finished, smirking. "But even before Hakuba and I went searching the mansion, the police hadn't found _anything_ resembling the necktie pin in question. I believe it was an image of a forest or grove, however you think of it, which is what 'Hayashi' literally means. It was inlaid with numerous tiny diamonds and had a thin, gold bordering… very pretty."

Mareo sank to the ground, reached into his pocket, and tossed something towards Kasuma, who was the closest. Kasuma caught it and found that it was the necktie pin. "So why did you do it?" Hakuba asked.

"I didn't mean to… honestly, I didn't," Mareo mumbled, "It just happened. I was trying to convince my father to change his mind about Hamako… he never did approve of us. We got into an argument and, while smiling, he said 'I'll change my mind but make sure you take all her family's money so I can add more items to my collection.' I-I just lost it when he said that, the only reason he didn't ruin our engagement early on was so he could steal her family's money to buy more _junk_ for his _stupid_ collection! I couldn't forgive him!"

Megure soon had Mareo in cuffs and in a patrol car. The staff dispersed to continue their tasks and the Hayashi family had been taken to the station to get their statements recorded. Conan sighed and relaxed against the door he was still hiding behind. Many of the other people that had been in the room were gone… that is except… "So who else knows?"

Conan jumped as the door he was behind swung closed, its companion door closing shortly after. Kasuma stared at the boy, searching for an unsaid answer, not that she was expecting one. "W-what?"

Kasuma sighed, "Who else knows that you're not who you say you are?"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about." Conan stammered, anxious to leave the room quickly, not that _that_ was going to happen any time soon it seemed.

"Mouri-san's out of the picture as I saw you dart him before his little deduction show. And if he doesn't know, then I think I can safely assume that Ran-san doesn't know," Kasuma mumbled almost to herself.

"I didn't dart Oji-san… I couldn't have," Conan replied, raising his hands in front of his face.

"Don't try to get out of it, I know what I saw… it may have been the use of peripheral vision, but I saw you dart him with something… The police seem to think you're some child prodigy so that's out. I'll say it again: who else knows that you're not who you say you are?"

'Damn it,' Conan thought, 'I forgot about her sharp observational skills. How could I let this happen?' Conan desperately raked his brain for some sort of excuse… he could find none.

Kasuma took a seat next to Conan, her back facing the doors. As if in slow-motion, Conan saw her reach for his wrist, knowing full well what she was aiming for. Before he could do something about it, Kasuma had grabbed onto his left wrist, more specifically, his wrist watch. She skillfully unclasped it and examined it, "You were holding this up."

'I _really_ need to see if Hakase can give that thing more room for darts… 'cause I could really use one about now.'

After fiddling around with it, Kasuma found a way to release the crosshairs from the watch, "Ah, naruhodo… this _is_ what you used." Kasuma glanced over at Conan, returning the watch, "So, why would you need such a tool? Can't you give the deduction yourself? Unless, you can't… Do you need to conceal the mastermind behind 'Nemure no Kogoro?'"

'She'll never let this go… I give up,' Conan sighed, "I do… otherwise I and all the one's I love will be killed." In a lower tone, Conan added, "I have to."

Suddenly, Kasuma started laughing. Conan quirked an eyebrow, inwardly thinking she had gone mad. "It really _is_ a small world. I was wondering when _They'd_ strike again… I hadn't heard much about them in Europe or in the States. Guess they really _are_ much more active in Japan."

"Who are you talking about?" Conan asked.

"You implied it, you should know," Kasuma answered cryptically.

"You mean… the Men in Black?"

Kasuma's laughing ceased, "That's what you call _Them_? Huh… never heard _that_ before."

"Wait, what are you saying? What do _you_ know of _Them_?" Conan hissed.

"Far more than_ you_… that much is clear," Kasuma answered, earning a glare from Conan, "And I also know that my family was downright _stupid_ to associate themselves with the Organization."

"'Associate?' What are you talking about?" Conan asked, stupefied.

Kasuma was cut off by Ran's voice calling out, "Conan-kun! Where are you?"

Kasuma set a finger against her lips, "We'll have to continue this somewhere else." Ran entered the collection room and spotted Conan and Kasuma, telling them that everyone was leaving and that they should be leaving as well. Outside the estate, Kasuma immediately left, saying that her car was parked around the corner and that she needed to check up on Ai-chan. All the police cars except one were gone, Hakuba and two other officers occupying the remaining vehicle. Grasping his skateboard tightly, Conan entered the rental car behind Mouri and Ran and the car took off behind the patrol car.

"Stop the car!" Conan suddenly yelled as they were crossing a bridge. Surprised by the outburst, Mouri hit the brakes long enough for Conan to leap out of the car.

"Conan-kun!" Ran yelled after him. Outside the car, Conan noticed that the police had also stopped, seeing the same thing he had. Hakuba bolted out of the car and ran towards Conan, where he had a better view of what was going on. As Mouri, Ran, and the officers were exiting their respective cars, Mage landed atop the bridge they were on, staring down silently. Hakuba suddenly remember something and started digging through his pockets, looking up just in time to see KID flying in low. Wordlessly, Hakuba pulled out KID's card gun and chucked it up towards the thief. KID swiftly caught it and flew away while Mage saluted detective and officer alike and dropped a weight down before he himself flew away.

The weight turned out to be the riddle for the next heist… 'On the eighth's full moon, the green Dragon will be snatched whilst screaming 'Help!' Can it be saved? –Kaitou KID'

**Final Notes: I told myself that if Kasuma really was born in the year of the monkey, I'd laugh… and whadda you know… she is! Of course that would only work if she was born in the year 1992. That being the case, for Kasuma to be seventeen, it would have to be 2009 currently (since she's still using an IDP and hasn't gotten her Japanese license yet. 2009 also corresponds with the moon phase patterns I've been referring to). That also makes Shinichi, with a May 4****th**** birthday, seventeen as well. Kaito, with his birthday on June 21****st****, recently turned seventeen. Likewise, Hakuba, only his birthday being on August 29****th****, recently turned seventeen. Apparently Ran's birthday is October 2****nd**** (not sure if that's right but I'll go for it) so her's is coming up and I don't know anyone else's but they're all in the same class so seventeen-ish, give or take.**

**I'm still not satisfied with the murder trick… it took me forever just to think up the trick in the first place but it **_**still**_** doesn't really work I don't think… Geez, murder tricks are **_**so**_** hard to come up with. How does Aoyama-sensei do it?**

**I realize Watson really isn't a female but I'm far too lazy to go back in my story and change it so Watson stays female.**

**And I know Conan probably wouldn't give up that easily like he did in front of Kasuma but that needed to happen for events in Chapter 12 to make sense… You'll see when I post the next chapter…**

**. **_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "I just have one question." He looked at Mage, "Do you know a…"**_


	15. Find the Real Gem (12)

**A/N: Part six of the Pandora Arc!  
****Warnings: More secrets… and lies… (Will you be able to **_**catch**_** the lies? There are quite a bit..)  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan! And DCMonkey4EVR for listening… again  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Remember, anything in English is bolded, anything in Japanese (or some other language) is un-bolded. There's also a reference to Star Wars and Star Trek.. I own neither.**

**Today's quote is: "I have this image of [Cleopatra] hopping in a carpet." –Iocus**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Find the Real Gem!

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Agasa Residence  
October 2, 9:27 AM

"A party, you say?" Ran asked, peering over her mug of hot chocolate to look at Sonoko. The girl in question nodded.

"My parents were invited on a cruise to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of some financial group that I can never remember. Papa's friend is throwing a party for them on their cruise ship. They've invited representatives from all over Japan to come! I checked to see if it was okay to invite you and several others, including the kids, and they said OK!" Sonoko explained eagerly.

"Awesome!" Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi exclaimed.

"Can we go, Ran-oneesan?" Ayumi asked.

Ran smiled, "You'll have to check in with your parents to see if that's alright."

"Ah, I already called your parents and they all said that's fine," Agasa said.

"Yatta!" the three kids yelled, pumping their fists into the air.

"And, coincidently, that's where the next heist is," fluttered in a new voice.

"Kasuma-oneesan!" Ayumi called out, "And Ai-chan!"

Kasuma shrugged, "At least… that's what Hakuba tells me."

"He solved it already?" Ran asked her friend, raising an eyebrow.

"It would seem so," Kasuma answered.

"So then he and Nakamori-keibu will be at the party?" Conan asked this time.

"Nakamori-keibu will but not Hakuba. If something, like a heist, were to happen at a party, like this up-coming one, he'd rather skip the heist if it means not going to the party. Hakuba never was a big fan of them." Kasuma sighed, "I invited him but, like I expected, he declined."

"So?" Sonoko inquired, "What was the final verdict from our phantom thief experts?"

"The riddle left behind went something like this… 'On the eighth's full moon, the green Dragon will be snatched whilst screaming 'Help!' Can it be saved? Kaitou KID.' The de-riddled version would pretty much say that KID is going after the Jade Dragon, the 'green Dragon' from the riddle, at an unknown time on October fourth, the night of the full moon… which is also the night of this party you're talking about. The family throwing the party is unveiling a recently rediscovered emerald called the Jade Dragon. It turns out that this jewel was, at first, mistaken for a jade due to its opacity but further studies on it revealed that it was, in fact, an emerald. But since it had already been named 'Jade Dragon' no one bothered to change its name, as it may have gotten confusing."

"And it seems Mage is skipping out again for unknown reasons," Haibara added quietly. Kasuma nodded briefly at the scientist's comment, agreeing with her.

"Who knows, maybe Mage will do what he did last time he skipped out and reappear unexpectedly," Kasuma commented, shrugging. The two newest visitors both quietly accepted the mugs filled with hot chocolate from the Professor and took up seats in the living room.

"So what were you doing before you got here?" Ran asked, initiating small talk.

"I stopped by the mall briefly to ask Kaemon-san if I could take the fourth off in order to attend the party. And since I have a feeling you're going to ask me about my knowledge of the party prior to entering just now, I'll answer _that_ one right now. Sonoko's excited phone call about the party, very _rudely_ I might add, woke me up this morning. So I figured she'd drag me over there regardless of acceptance or not and I headed over to the mall as soon as it opened."

"Kasuma-neechan, what's that in your coat pocket?" Conan asked innocently, pointing at the white tab sticking out of the teen's pocket.

Kasuma looked down at it briefly before slapping her forehead once, "Aw crap, I should have gotten that taken care of when I was at the mall. It was in my mailbox this morning but they got the wrong address so I was going to give it back to the post office but it completely slipped my mind."

"What was it about?" Conan inquired.

"No idea, I don't open mail not addressed to me… except for my parents, as I _still_ get mail addressed to them. You would think that after years of letter responses not being sent out that they'd stop coming, but _nooo_ they just keep coming in." Kasuma and Haibara shared knowing looks, Conan quirking an eyebrow at the exchange. Kasuma shrugged, brushing off the topic, and leaned back into the couch. Several separate conversations broke out then and Kasuma chose that time to slouch farther into the couch, her mug of hot cocoa hiding her mouth as she whispered to Conan, who was sitting next to her, "We still need to chat about the Organization."

Conan's eyes widened very briefly, recounting the revelation from yesterday, and nodded his consent. "But when?" he whispered back.

Kasuma shrugged, "No idea. I _would_ suggest going down to Ai-chan's lab, but that's not here anymore."

Just then, Genta's eager voice overpowered the whispered conversation, "Ne, Hakase, do you have any new games we can try out?" At the new suggestion, Mitsuhiko and Ayumi grew excited, pleading the Professor to let them try out one of his games. Agasa complied, moving to set up the game system.

Kasuma grabbed the opportunity to gather up empty mugs and head for the kitchen. "Ah Kasuma!" Ran called out, "Do you want some help with those?"

"It's alright," Kasuma reassured, "I'll be fine. Conan-kun can help me, ne?" Kasuma winked at the boy. Conan got the message and nodded, gathering the remaining mugs on the table.

Ayumi turned to Conan, "Don't you want to play Conan-kun?"

Conan shook his head, "I'll pass. Besides, I'm horrible at video games… you guys know that." Shrugging, Ayumi turned back to the screen where Genta and Mitsuhiko were currently battling it out in a racing game. Conan hurriedly followed Kasuma.

In the kitchen, Kasuma placed the mugs into the sink, doing the same with the mugs Conan held out. With his hands free, Conan jumped up onto the kitchen counter as Kasuma gently turned on the water and began hand washing the mugs. Even though her head was down, hands intent on cleaning the dirtied mugs, her complete and utter attention was focused on Conan, "A secret for a secret. Should I go first or do you want to speak first…? We won't have much time but rushed time is better than no time at all."

"You said yourself you know more than me, so why don't you start off," Conan replied.

"Alright…" Kasuma quickly glanced at Conan, "Mind if I talk in English? There'll be less chance of being overheard and _understood_ this way." Conan shook his head, telling her he didn't mind, **"Good."** Kasuma started immediately. **"My story is fairly similar to Ai… I mean Shiho-chan's story so you may be familiar with some of the details. The Organization **_**loves**_** their science experiments and that was what my parents found themselves performing. Neither they nor I were able to figure out what exactly **_**They **_**were trying to gain with the experiments but they did them anyway. After all,"** Kasuma shrugged, **"If you defy **_**Them**_**, you die. Even before I was born, my parents were associated with **_**Them**_** but the project they took on in my lifetime very literally killed them. I don't have many details about the project itself, but I recognized some of the research and formulas when Shiho-chan let me look at her progress, so I assume it has to do with Shiho-chan's current predicament and, I assume, yours too. Anyway… I'll have to skim through a lot of the nitty-gritty details, but when I was eleven, my father ruined their research and the lab itself, which drove us into hiding. This was when I first found myself in the States. We were able to live there in peace for one year until Vermouth… and from your reaction I can tell you recognize her… killed my family but, strangely, spared me. The Hakubas took me in for a while before I moved back to the States and then here.**

"**All… actually **_**most**_** of the information I know about the Organization came to me through e-mail. I won't have time to recite any of them, but I can let you have a look at some point… though Shiho-chan might not approve. The information came from a rat within the ranks of the Organization but I have no idea who this rat is exactly."**

Conan took in a sharp breath, **"Could it be Mizunashi Rena? She's a CIA agent within the Organization."**

"**It's possible,"** Kasuma murmured, **"But like I said, I have no idea who it is… it's **_**highly**_** possible."** Kasuma's hands slowed, stalling for more time. **"What about you?"**

Conan nodded, **"I won't say much, as you may have already heard all of this, but I'll elaborate if I need to. First of all, my real name is Kudo Shinichi, not Edogawa Conan."**

"**I figured as much… you look just like a chibified version of Shinichi-kun, minus the glasses of course. I never did believe the 'distant relative' thing Ran-san mentioned… it doesn't seem likely that distant relatives would look so similar."**

Conan nodded again, **"I was forced to take up this alias when Gin and Vodka,"** Kasuma stiffened very slightly at the names, **"Fed me an experimental poison, the same one Haibara is working to find an antidote for. Since you already figured out what happened to Haibara, I don't think I really need to explain that. Oh, yesterday you had asked who else knew about me… Besides Haibara, the other people who know are my parents, Agasa-hakase, Hattori, Hondou Eisuke, who you haven't met, KID and apparently Mage as well. Vermouth also knows but she hasn't acted upon it as of yet, which in itself is a curious factor."**

Unexpectedly, Ran entered the kitchen, with the intent of checking the hot cocoa level in the pot on the stove. She stopped short when she heard the semi-unfamiliar tones of a foreign language, "English?"

Conan stiffened as Kasuma, seemingly unfazed, smiled, **"I was help… ah—**Sumimasen, I was helping Conan-kun practice his English. Apparently, he hasn't really used it in a long time…"

"Oh," Ran murmured, realization dawning on her, "I didn't know you were fluent in English, Conan-kun."

Conan laughed nervously, "Y-yeah, since my parents live in America, they wanted me to learn the language so I wouldn't be lost. But I haven't been practicing it as much, so it's not as good."

Ran smiled, "Well I'll leave you two to your practice session… but first, Kasuma, can I have some of the clean mugs? It seems the hot chocolate is still wanted out there." Kasuma smiled back, handing over a few cleaned and dried mugs. Ran thanked her friend and exited the kitchen.

"**Damn, you're good at that,"** Conan started in English, **"That was some quick thinking."**

Kasuma shrugged, **"I did this often when I wanted to fabricate stories about my family… Can't have anyone knowing what **_**really**_** happened to them, now can I?"**

"**I guess not,"** Conan mumbled.

"**Sometimes I'd even do what I just did…" **Kasuma flawlessly shifted back into her native tongue, "Starting off in a foreign tongue to give me more time to think out my story." Kasuma dried off her hands after she set down the last mug to dry. She then caught sight of the letter still in her pocket and she straightened, "Now I just need to find my way to a post office to hand them this letter." Kasuma exited the kitchen, Conan following her out.

"Kasuma? Where are you going?" Ran asked as she saw her friend heading for the door.

"Post office!" Kasuma announced as she opened the door and left. Kasuma walked down the driveway, then, when she was sure no one was paying attention to her, ducked into an alleyway and opened her cell phone, dialing a number from memory. She held it up to her ear and waited. After the third ring, someone picked up the line. Kasuma spoke right away, "Hello?…Yes, it's me…Listen, I have a favor to ask of you…"

* * *

Ekoda, Japan  
Kuroba Residence  
October 2, 11:37 AM

"I'll see you later Kaito!" Aoko waved as she turned the corner and headed to her own home a few houses down.

Kaito waved back then closed the door when Aoko disappeared. Sighing, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the letter he had found in his mailbox. "'Kuroba Kaito," he began reading aloud, "'Hey sorry 'bout this but you'll have to lead this heist. Since I'm one of the guests at the party, I can't really help you much this time. You know that contact I've mentioned? Well they're dragging me, civilian persona and all, to this party so I won't be able to slip away as easily. If there_ is_ any way I can help without changing my appearance, I _will_ go through with it. Sorry again. Mage.'

"What the hell, Mage?" Kaito ascended the stairs to the family room, immediately heading for the large portrait of Kuroba Touichi. Kaito stuffed the letter into his pocket and applied pressure to the portrait, the picture swiveling to reveal a secret staircase. Kaito stepped in, sliding the portrait closed. Descending the ten short steps, Kaito entered the domain of Kaitou KID. The magician-thief went straight to the computer in the room, which had been switched to a newer one due to the old one's age. After logging on, Kaito immediately opened a video-chat window, seeing that his fellow thief was online. When the two computers connected, Kaito, at first, could see no one in the room, "Mage?"

"Ah… Kaitou!" Mage appeared then, wearing his favorite blue baseball cap and baggy clothing.

"What's the meaning of this?" Kaito asked, holding up the letter for Mage to see.

"I explained it in the letter, didn't I? The contact that I get the helicopters from is dragging me, civilian persona and all, to the cruise ship party. I won't be able to slip away as easily, so I'll have to _stay_ in my civilian persona. I'm not down for the count by any means; I can still help in retrieving the emerald, I just can't change my appearance."

"And there was no way for you to decline?"

Mage shook his head, "None at all… It kinda morphed into an obligation of sorts." Mage shrugged, "But like I said, I can still help out… and I think I may need to. According to my contact, the family that owns the emerald… at least the head, she likes to add twists to her parties, so since we're crashing the party, she may have something up her sleeve regarding the gem."

Kaito grinned, "Sweet. I love it when our hosts put up a fight."

Mage chuckled, "Good. 'Cause she'll certainly be giving us one."

"Sorede?" Kaito's grin widened, "Who's this host that's gonna give us a good fight?"

"Aa, sa reru koto..."

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Cruise Ship in Tokyo Bay  
October 4, 4:01 PM

"Welcome," the friendly looking lady at the cruise ship entrance greeted, "Please take one of the party bags on the table." The large group that just entered did as the lady requested.

"What are these for?" Ran asked.

"Only Oku-san knows," the lady answered, shrugging. She then smiled, "Enjoy the party!"

"Arigato," Ran replied, following the rest of the group as they entered the main room of the ship.

"Sugoi!" the three real kids of the Shonen Tantei exclaimed, eyes taking in the large room. Above the stage on the other side of the room from the door, a banner saying '60th Anniversary Celebration' announced the reason for the large gathering. Tables filled with an assortment of foods and drinks lined one half of the wall to the door's left. Scattered at seemingly random placements, tables that could seat around six to eight people were dressed up with fancy blue, green, and white tablecloths. Every table sported a vase of assorted flowers and elegant silverware for each seat. Salt and pepper shakers were also at each table, along with a bottle of soy sauce and a bottle of ketchup. The ceiling was covered with balloons colored blue, green, and white, going along with the color scheme of the tables. There was already a large amount of party attendees sitting at tables, eating or conversing with other folks in the room.

A couple caught sight of the newcomers and strode over to them. "Glad you all could make it!" Suzuki Shiro announced heartily, adjusting his brown suit. His wife Tomoko stood next to him smiling gently, wearing a pale red dress that fell past her knees.

"Ah Papa, Mama," Sonoko spoke up, moving to the front of the group to embrace her parents.

"What's this? I see an unfamiliar face," Tomoko said, looking at said face that was near the back of the group.

"Ah, you must be talking about Kasuma," Sonoko answered, "She transferred to Teitan at the beginning of July."

"Kasuma… what?" Tomoko asked, looking for a surname.

Kasuma moved to the front, "Kazuki. Kazuki Kasuma."

"Speaking of Kazukis, where is our special guest? I know I saw him around here," Shiro mumbled, searching the room.

"Would you, by any chance, be talking about me?" a new, unfamiliar voice asked, the speaker swirling a glass of red wine in his hand.

"Yes, here you are." Shiro urged the speaker over, clapping a hand on the man's shoulder hard enough that the man faltered in taking a sip from his wine glass, "This is my good friend Kazuki Atsushi."

"Ne, Haibara," Conan whispered to the scientist, "Wasn't your father's name Atsushi?"

Haibara nodded, "I guess Kazuki-san's parents liked the name."

"He's the head of the financial group we're celebrating today," Shiro continued, "The Kazuki-zaibatsu has been around for as long as _our_ group. The Suzuki and Kazuki Financial Groups are two of the oldest financial groups in Japan… Well, at least in Eastern Japan. I can't be entirely sure about the other areas. Tell me… Kasuma, was it? You're not, by any chance, related to Atsushi here, are you? Because I vaguely remember Atsushi's niece coming over to play with Sonoko, and she would be about your age."

Atsushi shook his head, running a hand through his brown hair, "No, I don't believe that's right. Yes I have a niece, but right about now she should be in America with my sister. You know Hiromi… she loves traveling."

Kasuma also shook her head, "I'm the only living one left in my family. My parents died in an accident five years ago and my uncle died one or two years ago. And I never knew any of my grandparents, since they all died before I was born."

"Oh, now look what you've done!" Tomoko admonished, "Now I'm going to be all depressed during the party! This talk about death... From now on, 'death' is a forbidden topic… You know what? I think I see Mifune-san and Hatamoto-san. I think I'll talk with them for a bit." Tomoko departed from the group and walked over to Mifune, who had his black hair tied back in a ponytail.

"The Mifune Electronic Enterprises and the Hatamoto Group if I'm not mistaken," Kasuma murmured, glancing at the two men chatting with Tomoko.

"You're not mistaken," Shiro said, "I see you recognized those two fairly easily."

Kasuma shrugged, "I probably heard of them through the newspaper."

"It's getting later, you all must be hungry." Shiro motioned towards the long tables of food, "Help yourselves, it's buffet style." The children and Mouri immediately lunged for plates, Genta and Mouri piling all kinds of food onto their respective plates. The rest of the group filled their plates at a slower rate than the ones who had given themselves a head start. The group ended up taking two tables near the middle of the stage, despite their size, the four adults taking one table, and the teenagers and children filling up the second table.

"Ara, I thought he said he wasn't coming," Kasuma murmured as she stood and weaved her way through the tables, giving Hakuba, who had just entered, a three-fingered wave. 'Three-fingered' because her fingers were split between her middle and ring finger.

Hakuba face-palmed, "You've been watching too much Star Wars, haven't you?"

Kasuma grinned, "Star _Trek_. Get it right, Hakuba. Tonikaku, I thought you didn't want to go to the party?"

Hakuba shrugged, "I changed my mind. I think I'll live through this, it's just one party."

Kasuma rolled her eyes. "You're so melodramatic," Kasuma huffed as she walked alongside Hakuba.

Over at their table near the middle of the stage, Sonoko smirked and punched her palm, "I think I've got it!"

Ran quirked an eyebrow, "Got what?"

Sonoko's smirk turned into a grin as she said in a sing-song tone, "Kasuma no na-zo."

Ran looked over at Kasuma, who was clad in a black dress that stopped just above her knees, sequins littering the skirt. The girl had on black stockings and wore white platform wedge sandals and a pearl necklace to contrast the black. Ran turned back to Sonoko, "What riddle?"

"Don't tell me you forgot?" Sonoko exclaimed, shaking her head and staring down at her dark pink dress. Sonoko inched closer to Ran and talked quietly so as not to catch the attention of the children at the table, "You know that time right after Shinichi left for wherever… when we were going to the airport."

Realization dawned on Ran and she sighed, "That wasn't really a riddle. She just told you he lives in a different country and that you've met him once or twice."

"Yes, but I just found someone who fits the bill," Sonoko said, giggling softly. Her voice lowered drastically, "Ha-ku-ba Sa-gu-ru."

"Masaka ne," Ran said, shaking her head. "They're friends."

"So? You and Shinichi are friends too, and look what that got you two! Head over heels with each other." Ran pulled back, blushing furiously. "Come on, Ran! You have to face the facts _sometime_!" Sonoko grinned, "Now I know _everything_! Makato-san and I, you and Shinichi, and Kasuma and Hakuba-san."

"I have a _very strong_ feeling you're talking about me, Sonoko," Kasuma said, glaring at the teen, "But I'll deal with the consequences of not asking about it." Kasuma plopped down in her seat between Conan and Ran, as Hakuba took a seat behind his childhood friend at the first table. Sonoko continued talking quietly with Ran, several times escalating in volume due to Sonoko's constant giggling. Kasuma smirked when she finally took in what Ran had decided to wear, 'And I thought you were too embarrassed to wear that dress because it sloped off your shoulder.' Ran was wearing the same green dress with white floral embroidery on the bottom half of the skirt. Today, however, Ran had decided against wearing the green shawl and, instead, chose to wear simple thin, white bracelets and green flats. Having finished most of the food on her plate, Kasuma stabbed the previously untouched dessert in front of her and took a small bite. Conan's head jerked over to Kasuma as she started coughing hoarsely.

Conan lowered his voice, "Kasuma-chan?"

Still coughing slightly, Kasuma shook her head and looked at Conan, "Don't eat the cake."

"Why not? Is it not good?"

"That's not my point," Kasuma murmured, "Tell Ai-chan as well. Don't eat the cake."

"But why not?" Conan pressured.

"There's alcohol in it… Paical to be specific," Kasuma whispered, grabbing her glass of juice and drinking it to rid herself of the taste.

"P-paical? How can you tell?" Conan asked the teen.

"I've tried it before. Hated the taste… I don't think I'd ever be able to forget the taste. In fact," Kasuma smirked slightly, "There are only two that I can tolerate… Well, I guess the number's closer to three or four. But Paical is definitely _not_ one of the three or four."

Conan looked at the cake on Kasuma's plate, "You were able to discern the alcohol inside it with such a small bite?"

Kasuma shrugged, finally recovered from the little incident, "I guess my tongue's sensitive to alcohol… at least the one's I can't tolerate."

There was a distinct tapping noise from the speakers lined around the room. The noise led the party-goers to look to the stage, where a lady dressed in a dark blue, floor-length dress stood, clearing her throat. She tucked some stray black hairs behind her ear and addressed the crowd, "Thank you for coming, everyone. I thank you all on the behalf of the Kichida Group as well as the Kazuki-zaibatsu, whom we celebrate today." The woman smiled down at Atsushi, "Sixty long years… and now my good friend, Atsushi, is leading the Zaibatsu. And your niece after you… however, that's the future. Presently, we celebrate sixty years of existence and we all know how hard maintaining a company for such a long time can be, deshou? Anyway, for those of you I have not become acquainted with, I am Kichida Nao, head of the Kichida Group, and it is my honor to host this party.

"However, I feel I should address two of our guests and their intentions. As many of you already know, Kaitou KID and Masked Magician are after the Jade Dragon, an emerald we are exhibiting during this cruise. Many of you may have seen Nakamori-keibu patrolling the area and, thus, that was what gave it away. But just because KID and Mage have their eyes on Jade Dragon, don't expect me to give them an easy heist. That being said, I've come up with a little something to keep them on their toes. When you all entered, you were asked to pick up one of the gift bags stored by the ship's entrance. If you take a look inside your bags, you'll find a brown chest that looks like this." Nao held up a medium sized brown metal box lined with silver. A small keyhole rested in the middle of the chest. All of the guests pulled out their own brown chest, examining the objects carefully. "Somewhere among these three hundred chests rests the Jade Dragon." The crowd briefly broke into murmurs. "Each box has something in it… now whether or not it's the emerald is another story. This is a simple game that lasts until we've circled Tokyo Bay. The rules are also very simple. Everyone is allowed to look inside their box once… but don't do so yet. There are restrictions to this simple task, the most important being that you open it secretly, without anyone around you to see the contents. Another important factor is that you keep the state of the contents a secret, a secret you must guard dutifully, like tracking your business progress or assets. I would say guard it with your life, but we know KID and Mage would never let it go that far."

A few chuckles flew swiftly through the crowd, dying down when Nao spoke again. "Mochiron, I've ensured that no one will be able to reopen these boxes. You see, after opening it once," Nao opened up the chest in her hand, displaying the good-sized rock sitting inside, "And clarifying whether the Dragon is in there or not, the chest will automatically lock when closed." Nao snapped the lid shut, a faint clicking sound resonating through the room because of the proximity of the microphone, "And only the master key, which has been hidden away and locked up as well, can reopen the chests. This ensures that no one will try to sneak a peek at the contents of their or anyone else's chest." Nao started laughing, "Saa, let's see if you can snatch your target, KID… Mage. I dare you to try and steal Jade Dragon from under _all_ our noses!"

* * *

"Oooh, she _dares_ us, now does she?" KID murmured, speaking low enough so only his partner could hear him, "You heard that, didn't you, aibou?"

"'Course I heard it," Mage, rather, Mage's civilian persona, answered, "Tokoroga, does she _really_ think she can hide the jewel from us?"

"She certainly _does_ think she can," KID grinned, "But she doesn't _quite_ know who she's up against."

"You can say that again," Mage responded, smirking.

* * *

Sonoko squealed, "Ran, Kasuma, let's look at ours right now!" Sonoko grabbed her companions' wrists and yanked them out of their seats.

"Ch-chotto! Sonoko, it's supposed to be in secret, isn't it? We can't check as a group!" Kasuma protested as Sonoko dragged her and Ran.

"Soudayo, Sonoko," Ran said, agreeing with Kasuma, "We're not supposed to be in a group."

"That's why I'm taking us to the bathroom. A quick peek while in one of the stalls is secretive enough." Sonoko beamed as she threw open the bathroom door. Sonoko scanned the room, "Good. No one else is in here."

Curious as to what Sonoko was doing, Conan watched the girls exit the room, Ran and Kasuma both protesting. Beside him, Haibara smirked, pushing the small cake away from her as she watched the teenagers leave. "Ne, ne," Genta said then, "Can you think of any, Mitsuhiko?"

Mitsuhiko tapped his chin, thinking. "Not at the moment."

"What are you talking about, you guys?" Conan asked, looking across the table at the children.

"Can _you_ think of any, Conan-kun?" Ayumi asked, "Riddles, I mean."

"If it's riddles you're looking for then I have some," Agasa offered, smiling at the kids. All three kids groaned, "Now," Agasa began, "A magician was at a carnival bragging about how he could hold his breath under water for 6 minutes. A boy walked up and told him, 'I can stay under water for 10 minutes! If I can't, I'll pay you 8000¥, but if I do, you have to pay me 8000¥.' The magician ended up having to give the boy 8000¥. How did the boy get the money?"

"That can't be possible!" Genta cried, "How can that boy hold his breath under water for ten minutes?"

"It must be possible if the kid was paid 8000 yen," Haibara remarked, shrugging.

"It is possible, Genta, just not in the way you're thinking of," Conan responded, "The boy in the riddle got himself a glass of water and held it above his head for ten minutes."

"Correct!" Agasa announced, "Now here's a harder one. **YYURYYUBICURYY4ME** –what does this mean?"

"Now that's not fair, Agasa-hakase," Kasuma said as she took her seat again, "I don't think they know that much English."

"'English?'" Ayumi asked, "What do you mean?"

"If you three don't mind me saying the answer," the three kids shook their heads, silently asking her to continue, "The answer would be: **'Too wise you are, too wise you be, I see you are too wise for me.'** But you wouldn't know that unless you had prior knowledge in English as one, it uses letters from the English alphabet, and two, it won't make sense unless you answer in English."

"How did you figure that out, Kasuma-oneesan?" Ayumi asked.

Kasuma pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from her black pea coat, setting the paper down on the table. "If you write out the letters and number like so," Kasuma wrote down the letters—and number—on the paper, giving the characters a space between each one. "Then sound it out as you see it, you get…"

"**Two y's u r, two y's u b, I c u r two y's four me…** In proper English, that would be **'too wise you are, too wise you be, I see you are too wise for me,'"** Conan explained. He then looked at the Professor, "At least you're straying away from those horrible puns you normally come up with."

Agasa chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck as Kasuma leaned back in her seat, "That riddle is similar in format to the riddle, **'If you are an it, you are e'** with the answer being **'furniture.'** You can figure it out by restating the riddle using letters of the alphabet… **'f… u… r… n… i… t… u… r… e…' furniture."**

"Cool!" the three children exclaimed.

"Anyway… how did you get on the topic of riddles?" Kasuma asked.

"We were just talking about KID and Mage's riddles, and then we decided to say some riddles we knew of," Mitsuhiko answered.

"Ah," Kasuma murmured, one hand fiddling with her chopsticks while the other placed the gift bag in the pocket of her coat and zipped it up, sealing the bag and chest inside.

The riddle swapping went on for quite some time, most of that time spent on explanations and the reasoning behind each one. The riddles, however, stopped at one point when musicians and dancers had been brought out on stage, children and teenager alike stopping to watch the performance. There was a mixture of music and dance styles throughout the remainder of the night, ranging from African dance to flamenco to hip hop to tinikling, the last one pointed out to the group by Kasuma. At some point, during another break in the riddle sharing, Conan noticed a familiar action occurring on the stage, the reason as to _why_ it was familiar unbeknownst to him. All of a sudden the lights blacked out, plunging the room into darkness. The performers stopped and the voices of the guests escalated in volume. A manic laugh filled the room, "I sincerely apologize, for this blackout has ended the entertaining performance on stage. I wonder why it blacked out in the first place… I had set it at a much later time," a chuckle could be heard, "No matter. I felt I needed to announce that Jade Dragon is already in my grasp." Several exclamations were emitted, one of which Conan focused on.

"Kasuma! Where's your chest?" Sonoko called out.

Conan promptly switched on the flashlight on his wristwatch, the other members of the Shonen Tantei following suit shortly after. Conan directed his light at Kasuma, who had just extracted from the pocket of her coat a brown chest. She examined the object carefully, holding it up to the light Conan was providing. She blanched, "Shimatta, this isn't the same one! It's been switched!"

"Kasuma-neechan… are you saying _your_ chest had the Dragon in it?" Conan asked her hurriedly.

Kasuma nodded, cursing under her breath. The room was suddenly filled with pink smoke, obscuring the sight of the occupants in the room. Cursing quietly, Conan ran towards the doors, throwing them open and running up the stairs to a higher elevation. Growling, Conan searched the area for movement, catching sight of something white out of the corner of his eye. Conan ran toward it, ascending another flight of stairs before finally spotting the owner of the white object, the object being a white cape. KID stopped near the edge of the upper deck, his back turned towards Conan. Seemingly unaware—or at least not paying heed to the detective behind him—KID exchanged soft, quiet words with another figure in white, undoubtedly Mage. Mage moved around KID to look at Conan, "Tantei-kun… so good of you to join us. However… I have a feeling you don't want to partake in friendly chit-chat."

"You're right," Conan replied, taking small steps towards the thieves, "To an extent."

"And to what extent would that be?" KID asked, smirking slightly.

Conan shrugged, "A simple clarification." Conan stopped his advance and looked at the thieves. "I just have one question," he looked at Mage. "Do you know a slip jig?"

"Of course I kn—" Mage froze and clamped a gloved hand over the drawn mouth of the mask. The eyes behind the mask widened.

"I knew it," Conan smirked.

"What tipped you off?" Mage said, still covering the mouth of the mask.

"First, it was your bow. The way you extend your right foot when you bow is proof that you dance… Irish dance. Of course that wasn't enough for me to find your identity since both males and females bow in that fashion. Honestly," Conan shrugged, "I just took a wild guess when I asked about the slip jig… only females learn a slip jig in Irish dance, so your positive reply—however unfinished it was—was enough to clear _that_ up." Conan sighed and knelt down, slowly turning the dial on his sneaker, "You've been doing a pretty good job at hiding it so I couldn't really find much else to clear the air. I figured I may as well take a stab at it. No matter what your answer would have been, I still would have gotten something out of it. Well, enough of my blabbing, it's time I caught you two." He flicked open his stun-gun watch and inflated a soccer ball.

"CONAN-KUN! Where are you?" Ran's voice floated through.

Conan whirled around but turned back when he heard a snicker. "I love doing that," KID announced in his normal voice, while in the process of diving over the edge. Conan hastily kicked the ball, aiming for the thief. Mage snatched KID's card gun and shot at the ball, sending it off its course. Two hang gliders were summoned soon after.

The next morning, Nakamori received a fax, signed by KID and Mage, saying: On All Hallows' Eve, when the Christmas Star pays a visit, we will alight and grab our prize. KID and Mage.

**Final Notes: So could any of you point out some (maybe all) of the lies planted in at seemingly random times? I'm curious if they were blatantly obvious or not (hopefully not… I don't want the truth out **_**quite**_** yet)  
**'**Aa, sa reru koto' means 'Ah, that would be…' (at least, that's what Google Translate tells me… and I **_**know**_** it isn't always the most accurate so if it's wrong then someone please tell me so I can fix it)  
****Bonus question! Who snickered? Take a guess… there's a 50/50 chance you'll get it right so go ahead. Try!**

**. **_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: **__**"Crap… Now all we need is dramatic music. I can just imagine 'Requiem for a Dream' playing in the background."**_


	16. The Black Organization Strikes (13)

**A/N: Part seven of the Pandora Arc!  
****Warnings: Bombs... A fairly—actually make that **_**very**_**— lengthy chapter (as the snippet I wrote beforehand is pretty lengthy in itself… about 2 ¼ pages Calibri 8-point font *sweatdrop*) I've kinda been failing at the whole 'shorter chapters' thing…  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan for BETA-ing and DCMonkey4EVR for helping to find conclusive evidence (you'll find out just what I mean…)  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Because I'm getting myself too confused, all 'niisan' and 'neesan' type addresses will be changed to 'niichan' and 'neechan' (except for Ayumi who will continue saying '(o)niisan' and '(o)neesan')  
**

**And today's quote is: "Smile shoplifters, you're on camera!" –Sign at an Asian market**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: The Black Organization Strikes!

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
October 11, 7:14 AM

Conan covered his mouth as he gave a huge yawn. His eyes roamed over the exterior of the house he had only seen once. Even though it was expansive in size, the three-story house gave off a very humble vibe. The locked, black metal gate separated the house from the sidewalk, a brick wall surrounding the house on all four sides. The front yard was a large grassy area with flowers of all kinds lining the inside of the wall as well as the border of the house. From Conan's position on the right side of the gate, he could see a very old Christmas decoration in the yard. From the looks of it, it was a LED rope light image of Santa Clause and his sleigh with reindeer pulling the sleigh up in front. Along the pillars on the front patio were more rope lights, red in color, spiraling around the length of the column. One patio chair sat on the left side of the door, just underneath the doorbell. Conan looked up and examined the name plate that sat next to the old intercom. Engraved on the plate was the name 'Takashi,' the single kanji character resting alone. Around the edges, the plate was showing signs of rust, further proof of the house's previously abandoned state. On either side of the kanji character were very small, faded paintings in yellow, purple, blue, and green. Conan was only able to identify one picture, the sun, the rest too far faded to distinguish any of its original form. On the other side of the gate was another nameplate with the characters for 'Kazuki' engraved on the silver rectangle. 'And to think,' Conan thought dismally, 'I had no idea of this house's existence. But yet, she lived so _close_ to me. How did I never run into her or her parents before?'

Conan was pulled away from his thoughts by the faint noise of a door opening and closing, "Kasuma, Ai-chan!" Ran, who had been standing in front of the gate, exclaimed.

"Ran-san? And Conan-kun. Why are you over here?" Kasuma asked as she unlocked the metal gate and opened it, closing and locking it again once Haibara passed it.

"We thought we'd meet up with _you_ two for a change. You're always the ones meeting us at the Agency," Ran remarked, shrugging.

"Well that's because the Agency is on the way to school. Now you two have to backtrack," Kasuma said, raising an eyebrow, "That's why we're always meeting at the Agency."

"We don't mind the walk," Ran brushed off, "Besides; we've never seen your house. Ne Conan-kun?"

"Un," Conan nodded, smiling.

Kasuma shrugged, "Suit yourself. But I won't be able to show you around, we'll be late to school that way."

"Then let's go," Ran said, smiling.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Teitan High  
October 11, 8:10 AM

Ran looked at a nearby desk and found Kasuma bent over, intently focused on… something Ran couldn't make out. Sliding off her desk, Ran moved over to Kasuma's desk, "What are you doing?" she asked quietly.

Kasuma looked up, startled, then relaxed when she saw who had spoken. "Hakuba just sent me a text asking about 'All Hallows' Eve.' It seems he can't remember what or _when_ it is so he's asking me since I have lots of knowledge about the Calendar of Saints," she whispered back.

"'Calendar of Saints?' What is that?" Ran asked.

"Something in the Christian faith where they organize the feast days of saints in a liturgical year. Hakuba recognized All Hallows' Eve as having to do with it but he can't remember _what_ exactly it is or _when_ it is in the liturgical year," Kasuma explained.

"And you know?"

Kasuma nodded, "Don't really know _why_ I did, but I went to a private Catholic school in America for the first half of high school. They require four years of religion so…" Kasuma trailed off, shrugging. "Course, that's also where I learned about other religions like Islam or Buddhism and all the others out there.

"Anyway, All Hallows' Eve, when referred to by a different name, is Halloween," Kasuma finished, texting a short reply.

"What's Hakuba-san doing texting you during school?" Ran asked, incredulous.

"According to the lengthy rant he sent me before getting to the point, Kaito has dyed everyone's hair, except Aoko-chan's, a spectrum of neon colors. Not even the teacher was spared. This, in turn, led to a temper flare in Aoko-chan and she initiated a mop chase… which they're still engaging in if Hakuba was able to respond just now." Kasuma shrugged, closing her cell phone, "Of course, I had to filter through the colorful profanities to get to the bottom line. Kaito really must have done a number if he got Hakuba cursing _that_ badly."

"So he's solved the heist note?" Sonoko asked, bounding over to the teens.

"More or less," Kasuma answered, "Hakuba still hasn't found the _exact_ name of the target but it's another reference to the Christian faith… what with the whole 'Christmas Star' phrase. He said he'll be looking into it after school. Then he'll tell Nakamori-keibu about it so he can get ready. He'll have a lot of time to come up with something to use against KID and Mage since there's quite some time between now and the heist." When the classroom door slid open, Ran and Sonoko rushed back to their seats, awaiting the beginning of their teacher's lesson.

* * *

Internet  
Video Chat via World Wide Web  
October 20, 11:24 AM

"Did you ge—What was that?" KID interrupted himself as he heard something broadcast itself through the camera.

"Probably the toilet," Mage shrugged off, intently reading a small packet regarding their next target, "This place was _designed_ so that one could hear everything going on in other areas of the house. Paranoia, you could call it."

"Family member?" KID asked, referring to the being that _caused_ to toilet to be heard.

Mage shrugged again, "You could say that. Anyway… what were you saying?"

"Ah," KID held some papers up to the camera, "Did you get the blueprints of the hotel I sent you?"

"I did," Mage nodded, "They're right next to me." Mage paused in her reading and looked at KID, "How did you even _get_ those prints? The construction isn't even completely _done_ yet."

KID grinned, "I have my ways."

"It wasn't, by any chance, this 'Jii-chan' fellow you sometimes mention, was it?"

KID's grin faltered, "You figured it out, didn't you?"

"It would seem so," Mage smirked. Mage dropped her smirk, frowning slightly, "I have a bad feeling about the heist."

"How so?" KID asked, worry marring his expression.

"I'm not sure," Mage answered honestly, "I don't get them very often but, for the most part, when I do, it doesn't end very well. It's kinda like the feeling I got while I was preparing for the heist that the first _real_ sniper attack happened on. I'm glad I had decided on wearing my father's Kevlar, otherwise… I would have been mincemeat."

"You're not planning on retreating are you?" KID asked his partner.

"No!" Mage answered swiftly, "I never retreat… I'll still go through with it… I just have a bad feeling about it."

"Well, I guess we'll have to be extra careful on Halloween," KID remarked nonchalantly. Mage nodded her agreement, quietly reading the packet in her hand.

"When does their plane land?"

KID tapped his chin, "I think it comes in a few days. One day after the construction is due to be finished."

"So… the twenty-eighth?"

KID nodded, "That should be it."

"So we've still got some time."

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Hotel construction site  
October 27, 4:39 PM

"And you're saying your family helped finance this?" Ran asked as she took in the newly finished hotel that exhibited twelve stories, at _least_, of rooms. "It's _huge_!"

Sonoko nodded, beaming, "And it just got finished. They're already accepting guests even though the grand opening isn't until Halloween."

"Aren't the guests simply the people _invited_ to the grand opening?" Kasuma asked, looking over at Sonoko.

Sonoko shrugged, giving a short nod, "The ones not from the Tokyo area, yes. But anyway, since Papa helped finance the hotel, he's been invited to the grand opening but he can't make it so…"

"So you're inviting _us_ instead," Kasuma concluded, examining the hotel exterior. Sonoko nodded rapidly. "Sorry but I'll pass."

"As will I," Haibara answered.

"_Whaat?_" Sonoko exclaimed, "Why?"

"Uh, well… Ai-chan just found a new science experiment she wants to try out and it had a Halloween-y theme so we were going to perform it on Halloween. We still need to find and buy all the supplies necessary so we'll be busy then… ne, Ai-chan?" Kasuma looked down at the scientist, smiling. Haibara nodded slowly, inwardly marveling at the speedy excuse. "Besides," Kasuma looked back up at Sonoko, "You'll have Ran-san and Conan-kun, at least, with you, right? They can keep you company."

"Well, yeah, but… Then you and I can't _plan_," Sonoko whined. "And we _just_ came up with it."

Ran sent a worried glance to Sonoko and Kasuma, "Plan…? Plan what?"

Kasuma and Sonoko both smiled brightly. "Hi-mi-tsu," they replied simultaneously.

"Ne, isn't that Nakamori-keibu and Hakuba-niichan?" Conan asked, pointing ahead of him at the Inspector and detective who were just exiting the hotel.

"I-it is!" Kasuma exclaimed.

Conan ran up to the Inspector and detective, yelling, "Nakamori-keibu! Hakuba-niichan!" The rest of the group met Conan, Nakamori, and Hakuba in the hotel parking lot.

"Why are you all here?" Hakuba asked the group.

"Sonoko wanted to show us the finished product her parents helped with," Kasuma answered. "And she wants us to come to the grand opening."

"Is there something going on here, Nakamori-keibu?" Ran asked. "There aren't many reasons that you'd be here. Unless…"

"KID and Mage are coming to this hotel," Nakamori explained, answering Ran's unfinished statement. "They're coming on Halloween to take something called the 'Star of Bethlehem' that is owned by Fukuda… someone…"

"Shizu. Fukuda Shizu is her name," Hakuba answered, glancing over at Nakamori. "Fukuda-san is one of the guests at the grand opening and will be given one of the rooms in this hotel when she arrives tomorrow."

"So I guess this means you're going to the grand opening," Ran responded. "At least… Nakamori-keibu will, right? Are you going to come as well Hakuba-san? You lived through the last heist so—"

"What are you talking about? I didn't go to the last heist," Hakuba returned, frowning.

"B-but… we saw you. You were sitting behind Kasuma," Ran insisted, looking over at Kasuma.

"I was at home with my baaya. I don't like parties so I didn't want to go… that's what I told Kasuma," Hakuba answered, flicking away some of his bangs.

"Then… then who was the one at the party?"

Hakuba shrugged, smirking, "Must have been KID… I'll have to exact my revenge on him next time we cross paths."

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Hotel Tama  
October 31, 7:41 PM

Ran, Sonoko, and Conan exited the white car, courtesy of one Mouri Kogoro, Sonoko rapidly leading the others into the brightly lit hotel, now known as Hotel Tama. Inside, they were met with an enormous lobby with elegant tiled floors and large chandeliers. In another room on the other side of the lobby, many well-known business figures and celebrities were enjoying the luxuries the hotel and its services gave them. Nakamori stood in the middle of the lobby, giving Task Force members their jobs and sending them off. Hakuba stood near the Inspector, wary of his strong lungs, and calmly surveyed the hotel lobby. When the high school detective noticed the group, he walked over to them and asked, "Where is Kasuma? Did she decide not to come?"

Ran nodded, "She said she and Ai-chan found a new Halloween-y experiment and they wanted to perform it _on_ Halloween."

'It may not be a Halloween themed experiment but they probably _are_ in the lab working on something relating to Apoptoxin,' Conan thought, sighing softly. 'She _did_ tell me she was going to do her best to help Haibara with the antidote a day or two ago… since her parents apparently did research that is being _used_ in Apoptoxin.'

"Of course," Hakuba sighed, smiling slightly, "That science freak."

"Hakuba-niichan?" Conan asked, moving around Ran to look up at the detective, "Nothing's happened, right?"

Hakuba nodded, "Nakamori-keibu is stationing men all over the hotel, but as of right now, KID and Mage haven't shown themselves… However, it's only a matter of time."

Conan asked another question, "Ne, how many staff members are in this hotel?"

"Disregarding the kitchen staff and waiters who will be staying in either the kitchen or ballroom where the party is, there are only a few maids and one or two bellboys. Not many people have been hired, since the hotel isn't technically open… So unless they're disguising as one of the guests, KID and Mage _have_ to be somewhere in the miniscule number of staff members. That's what you were thinking, right Conan-kun?" Conan grinned briefly, nodding. "I've pointed that out to Nakamori-keibu but I'm not sure if he's checked them or not."

* * *

A figure peered around the corner, watching and listening to the detectives talking. The figure ran a hand down the black skirt that stopped just short of their knees and fixed the white apron around their waist. Smirking, the figure turned around and walked down the hall, turning into one of the open doors. "They're onto us," the speaker said to another figure in a similar outfit to the speaker's.

"I figured as much… after all, Tantei-kun and Tantei-san are out there," KID spoke, smirking as Mage closed the door behind her. "By the way, do you still have a bad feeling about this heist?"

"Sadly, yes. I hope I'm just overreacting," Mage sighed, grabbing a cart with cleaning supplies and opening the door again.

"When can I expect the package?" KID asked, adjusting his maid disguise.

"Eight… if everything goes as planned," Mage responded immediately, pushing the cart out the door. "Expect it then."

"Well then…itte irasshai!" KID waved as Mage disappeared down the hall.

* * *

Ran, Sonoko, and Conan watched as Nakamori and Hakuba approached one of the ladies from the party, the two of them speaking to the lady in hushed tones. The lady in question was wearing a dark blue dress that stopped just about her ankles and was clutching a small, black leather purse. She had her short brown hair pulled up into a neat bun and wore a simple silver necklace. "Is that Fukuda-san?" Ran asked her friend.

"I'm pretty sure," Sonoko responded, nodding. "I've never met anyone in the company but that should be her."

"Nakamori-keibu must be talking to her about the thieves!" Conan exclaimed. Ran looked down and smiled, nodding.

"Well the Inspector better hurry or Fukuda-san will miss the main event that's starting in a few minutes," Sonoko remarked, looking at a clock on the wall.

"It was at eight, right?" Ran asked, also reading the time on the clock.

"Yep," Sonoko answered quickly, looking around the ballroom where the party was being held.

* * *

On the eleventh floor, in Room 1125, a maid shuffled about the area, grabbing used towels and dumping them in the bin next to her. She removed plastic bags from trash cans and set them into another bin. Just as she moved to the bed to change the beddings, the door to the room opened, revealing one Fukuda Shizu. The woman in blue stopped short when she saw the maid. The maid looked up from her work, startled, "Ah, gomen nasai, I didn't mean to intrude. I'm just tiding up the room… we clean rooms every three days."

Shizu shook her head, "I don't mind at all… you just startled me."

"Gomen nasai!" the maid exclaimed, bowing.

"No, no, you're fine. Go on with your work," Shizu said, moving to her luggage and sifting through the contents. The maid turned back to the bed, ripping off the old sheets and replacing them with new ones, carefully remaking the bed. With Shizu's back facing her, the maid smirked, moving to inspect the area around the bed, still acting as if she was changing the beddings. "Oh," Shizu spoke up, remembering something, "Please don't change the pillows."

The maid nodded, "Ryoukai." Inwardly, the maid smirked, 'The pillows, eh?' Discretely, the maid slid a glove-clad hand under one of the pillows, searching. She found what she was looking for, quickly switching the Star of Bethlehem with a fake and adding a small slip of paper. Mage slipped the real jewel into a hidden pocket and finished smoothing out the beddings. Silently, Mage collected her cleaning utensils and gathered them on the cart, steering said cart out the door. "Have a great day, Ma'am," Mage answered, nodding briefly.

Mage steered the cart into a laundry room, grabbing the used sheets and towels and tossing them down the laundry chute. She then pulled out the Star of Bethlehem and slipped it into a velvet pouch, smirking. 'Heh that was too easy. She's like a child awaiting a visit from the tooth fairy. All I had to do was retrieve the tooth and give her a quarter.' Mage then took one of the beddings she had yet to toss down the chute and wrapped the pouched jewel in it, letting it slide down the chute when she was done. All of a sudden, the hotel shook.

* * *

Conan trailed behind Shizu as she maneuvered through the halls on the eleventh floor, concealing himself behind potted plants placed along the hallway. Conan may not have heard what Nakamori, Hakuba, and Shizu were talking about, but the shrunken detective had a hunch that she'd be heading to her hotel room soon. His hunch was proven correct when he saw Shizu insert a hotel key card and enter Room 1125. Behind him, Conan noticed a door slightly ajar due to the security bolt that, for some reason, was parallel to the door frame. The boy slipped in just in time to bypass the gaze of a maid who had exited the hotel room. Conan quietly closed the door and backed up further into the room, which was unoccupied. All of a sudden, the hotel shook. Something struck the back of Conan's head and he collapsed, losing consciousness.

* * *

With the shaking of the entire hotel, the guests in the lobby ballroom erupted into screams of panic and confusion. Even though he was thoroughly confused, Nakamori was quick to order the guests to evacuate the building. Without any hesitation, the guests flooded out of the ballroom and into the parking lot. Outside, the full situation could be scaled correctly: the hotel was on fire. Not just any fire, a fire caused by, undoubtedly, an explosion of some sort. As Hakuba ran out behind the last people from within the hotel, the detective froze, "_No_. Not again," Hakuba whispered, staring at the hotel with worried eyes. Countless voices flooded through and Hakuba buried his face in his hand.

"_**Why if it isn't young Holmes,"**__ Mage drawled in that borderline voice as she crouched down on top of the jewel case stand, arms folded behind her back, __**"So good of you to join me."**_

"_**I'm not here to **_**join**_** you; I'm here to **_**catch**_** you,"**__ Hakuba retorted, edging closer to the stand._

"_**Tsk,tsk, that's a shame… Though I fear you wouldn't make a good thief anyway. You're too…"**__ Mage swung her hands around, searching for the right word._

"_**Righteous?" **__Hakuba offered._

"_**Now who said I wasn't righteous? You insult me, Holmes."**__ Mage skillfully opened the jewel case and extracted the jewel inside. __**"Anyway,"**__ Mage straightened, __**"Thanks for the jewel… You didn't do a very good job at **_**locking**_** the case, it would seem."**__ Mage shrugged, __**"Oh well. Easier for me… Ta-ta!"**__ Mage jumped up into the air, a smoke bomb going off just then to conceal the thief's movements._

"_**After him! After Mage!"**_

"_**What's going on? What was that explosion?"**_

"_**Do a head count! Immediately!"**_

"_**Twenty here, sir."**_

"_**Fifteen here, sir."**_

"_**I've got twelve here."**_

"_**Ten."**_

"_**Seven here."**_

"_**Six here, sir."**_

"…_**Everyone's accounted for."**_

"…_**Sir! There's a dead body!"**_

"_**What? Where?"**_

"_**Top floor."**_

"_**...That's where the last bomb was," **__Hakuba said as he looked to the top floor of the building._

"_**I-I-it's M-mage! It's gotta be!"**_

"_**H-h-he's dead?"**_

Hakuba scanned the crowd, secretly hoping he could immediately catch sight of the two thieves that were supposed to arrive. Seeing only the familiar faces of Ran, Sonoko, Mouri, and Nakamori, Hakuba found himself thinking, 'I'm glad Kasuma didn't come… then _and_ now.'

* * *

Mage shakily stood, quickly changing out of her maid disguise and donning her (mostly) white uniform and mask. Another explosion shook the hotel and Mage found herself on her rear end once again. Huffing, the thief opened the door of the laundry room and crawled out, looking up and down the hall. Smoke was already spreading through the hallway, so Mage stayed crouched down, examining the doors and finding an open one. The thief quickly slipped in and ran over to the window, forcing open the window to let in fresh air. Mage grabbed a set of earphones and situated them in their correct place. "Kaitou? Kaitou, can you hear me?"

Some static could be heard on the other end before KID responded, "Mage! Where are you? I don't see you anywhere in the crowd."

"Well that's because I'm not _in _the crowd," Mage responded, taking in a deep breath of fresh air. Yet another explosion racked the hotel and Mage gripped the window, hissing and jumping back when a burning piece of the room collapsed next to her. "Crap… Now all we need is dramatic music. I can just imagine 'Requiem for a Dream' playing in the background," Mage sighed. She looked out the window. "Am I the only one in here? I see you in the crowd but has everyone else evacuated?"

"Yeah, that _should _be the case," KID replied.

Mage removed the light green contacts that were irritating her eyes before looking through the crowd, feeling there was something missing… or _someone_. 'Chotto matte…' Mage thought, scanning the crowd again. "Shit, someone else is in here. KID, leave, I'm going to find him."

* * *

"Conan-kun?" Ran called out for the little detective, searching the crowd frantically. 'Where _is_ he?' Ran caught sight of her father amongst the hoard of police officers securing the perimeter of the hotel and keeping the civilians away from the burning building. She ran up to the detective, "Dad, where's Conan-kun?"

"How should I know where that brat is?" Mouri drawled.

Ran was no longer frantic, she was _panicking_. She found her way to the blonde detective in the crowd, "Hakuba-san, have you seen Conan-kun?"

"I'm sorry, Mouri-chan, I haven't seen him since we split up in the hotel. I'm sure he's made it outside."

'No, no he didn't.' Ran thought, staring at the hotel entrance, desperately hoping she was wrong.

* * *

Mage ran out the room and back into the hallway, forgetting about the immense amount of smoke and therefore sending herself into a hoarse coughing fit, the mask not doing a very good job of blocking out the smoke. Mage went from door to door, kicking down the barrier so as not to come in contact with the metal doorknobs. Upon reaching her fifth hotel room and kicking down _that_ door, Mage caught sight of a small red and white sneaker. "Damnit," the phantom thief cursed, moving towards the figure and kneeling down beside Conan, ignoring the stab of pain from the broken shards of glass by the boy.

"Damnit," Mage cursed as she shook the form of the small boy. "Damnit, damnit, damnit… Shit!" Mage shook her hand, shaking off the burning piece of wood. "That thing was burning." She turned back to the boy, "Conan, Conan! Wake up!... KUDO! Damnit, I am _not_ going to carry you like this. You have to be conscious! Wake up!"

Conan groaned and set a hand on the top of his head, "What happened...?"

"No time for explanations now, this place is gonna blow! Get into the harness!" Mage yelled over the overwhelming noise in the background. Conan got up and looked at the speaker. His eyes widened, "Come on!" Mage yelled again. Conan shakily stepped into the harness, trying not to breathe in too much of the smoke. Mage hastily finished the job and ran over to the window, forcing it open, cutting herself in the process, and calling Conan over. A large pair of wings appeared in front of Conan, the boy staring at them, marveling at the intricate, complex patterns. Then, realizing the situation, he backed away. Mage looked at the boy, "You _need_ to come with me unless you want to die." Mage looked out the window. "This just screams 'evil syndicate.' Kusou, this isn't going to work."

Mage collapsed the wings and looked around the hotel room, opening cabinets as she went. "Tantei-kun… get as far away from the window as you can."

Conan did just that and pressed himself against the wall. "What are you doing, Mage?"

Mage pulled something out of the cabinet and showed it to Conan, "Blowin' the window to smithereens."

"Idiot, you're gonna kill yourself," Conan mumbled, looking at the bomb.

"Have a _little_ more faith in me, will ya? Taku, I'm the one_ saving_ your sorry little butt," Mage retorted.

"Which makes it even _more_ strange." Mage placed the device below the window ledge and pulled something from her pocket. "_Now_ what are you doing?" Conan asked.

"I told you, blowing up the window… but right now the timer's set at about five minutes. That's too much time, so I'm going to play around with the wires. I've worked with these bombs before, so I know which ones I should cut to set off the bomb. I used this trick to fake my death. Get into the bathroom while I'm rigging the mechanism to cut it, Tantei-kun. Oh, and make sure there's enough room for threads to pass through."

Conan walked into the bathroom, stepping over the fallen debris, and closed the door slightly. He could hear the thief outside, moving around and, a minute or two later, Mage walked into the bathroom clutching two strings. "Hold this one. Tight."

Conan grabbed the string and pulled it taut as Mage closed the bathroom door and crouched down on the floor. Conan did the same and Mage counted quietly to herself. "Ju… Kyu… Hachi… Nana… Roku… Go… Yon… San… Ni… Ichi… Zero!" Mage yanked down on the string in her hand and crouched over Conan to protect him from the blast. Immediately there was the sound of shattering glass followed by an intense wave of heat seeping through the crack under the door. Shortly after, the noise subsided. Mage opened the door and went straight to the gaping hole in the room. **(A/N: I know the bomb explosion probably should have hurt them more than it did but let's just say the bathroom walls are 'bomb proof' or something like that :D )** Mage's wings appeared and she turned to face Conan. Conan walked up to the gaping hole in the wall and looked down at the ground eleven stories below. He looked at the wing shaped hang glider with a worried look on his face. Mage caught it and her expression softened, "Are you worried about weight?" Conan looked at the thief. "Don't be. You're under one hundred pounds right? I've had heavier loads." Conan's face never faltered, "You've never done this, have you?" Conan looked up at the thief again.

"Only once, and I didn't really succeed at it."

"That's because you haven't had much experience. And _I_ will be flying, so it should be fine."

"That's part of my worry. You've crashed countless numbers of times." Mage rolled her eyes.

"Blame Koko-sei Tantei Hakuba Saguru. He insists that the only way to catch me is to make me crash. He _knows_ this and so do I: I'm a fallen bird who's learned to fly. Destroy my wings and I will fall. But not in this case. I will_ not_ let that happen, not today. Besides," Mage's smirk was evident, "Holmes wouldn't shoot at me if I had a hostage." Mage knelt down and began attaching Conan's harness to the glider. Once finished with her task, Mage helped Conan get comfortable and stood up, bracing herself against the wall. "Probably should go now. There are likely more bombs here." The thief sighed, "Well ain't _this_ just a big case of déjà vu."

Conan forced a sound of agreement out and clutched the harness straps. **"Three… Two… One… Zero!"** Mage jumped and dove for a few seconds before pulling up. "Kusou," Conan looked up at the thief, "Screw Holmes… We should worry about that black car."

Conan looked down at the car in question and drew in a sharp breath. "A 356-A Porsche… Gin's car."

"_And_ that traitorous foreigner, I'd recognize that motorcycle anywhere. So… if I know Gin as well as I _think_ I do, there's probably a sniper and a bullet with my name on it. Not to mention the officers will pounce once I'm on ground… You shoot me and we both could die, so I suggest putting away that watch, Conan," Mage said, now referring to the watch Conan had on.

Conan faltered slightly at the missing honorific, but instead of listening to Mage, Conan pulled out his detective badge and contacted someone. "Hakase, can you tell the officers to clear an area and let no one except Ran or yourself in?"

"Sure Shinichi-kun but why?" Agasa asked.

"I'm hitchhiking on a pair of white wings. No need to explain myself." Conan turned to the thief, "Genta spilled food and drinks on his badge and gave it to Agasa-hakase to fix." Mage nodded silently then began a slow circle around the parking lot.

* * *

"He's _what_?" Ran exclaimed.

"Please calm down Ran-kun. Conan-kun is just fine but he needs us to clear a space down here and fast," Agasa said, trying to calm the frantic girl down. Without waiting for the girl to comply, the professor hurried over to Nakamori and restated Conan's request.

Ran raised her eyes to settle on the white wings standing out against the black smoke as it traced a large circle above the ground. The cocking of a gun brought her gaze back down, eyes widening at what she saw, "Hakuba-san! Don't shoot!"

* * *

After circling overhead a few times, there was a cleared space of about thirty meters in diameter, large enough… hopefully, for Mage to land comfortably. And land she did. Right smack dab in the middle of the cleared circle, Mage alighted gracefully. Once both feet were on the ground and once the thief crouched down, the great, white wings vanished, but not before Conan and his harness were removed from the glider. As ordered by Conan through Agasa, no officers stepped into the large circle, even though it looked as if they were barely restraining themselves. Only Ran and the professor were within the invisible walls. As soon as Mage helped relieve Conan of the harness, Ran rushed forward and pulled Conan into a hug. Conan blushed lightly but Mage was the only one to see the action. "Oh Kami Conan-kun. Thank goodness you're alright! Thank you _so_ much Mage-san!" Ran said, tears nearly overpowering the teenager.

Mage nodded, extended her right leg, and bowed, the very bow that got Conan thinking about the identity of the thief. The bow that helped reveal to Conan, and Conan alone, the gender of the illustrious phantom thief. "Hontou ni… Arigato," Ran whispered.

A smirk formed behind the mask. "You're very welcome, Mouri-san. But then again, I don't think anyone would want to leave an eight-year old like that. Besides, I've made the same vow that my partner did when I first became Masked Magician: 'No one gets hurt'."

"Except you! You're bleeding," Ran suddenly whispered, conscious of the surrounding bystanders anxious to inch closer.

The thief shrugged, "It's surely dried off by now; I can clean it up properly at home." Blue eyes caught the falter in Ran's face. "You don't trust my first aid skills? Would you like to do it yourself?"

"I'm sorry, it's just I—" Ran began.

"I'll be at the roof of your home in ten minutes. I've been meaning to officially meet you ever since my encounter with Kudo-san however long ago that was. Besides, it's a bit _too_ crowded here."

Ran nodded and, after smoking out the area, Mage disappeared.

* * *

Two figures stood on the roof of a certain detective agency, waiting and watching as a bright white glider speedily advanced, a glowing dove before a night sky. As promised, the thief, Masked Magician approached the building, rapidly getting larger. While still in the air, the white wings disappeared and Mage agilely landed on the roof, like a cat pouncing upon its prey. Not much had changed with the thief's appearance. The clothes seemed to be the same, bloodstained and mostly gray with soot. However, the mask that once covered the entire face of the phantom thief was replaced by a mask only concealing the thief's eyes and nose, leaving the mouth exposed. The thief's eye color hadn't changed but she was wearing a shoulder length black wig instead of the dark green wig from the heist. Ran fiddled with the handle of the first aid kit in her hand nervously as Mage advanced, slipping off the white jacket and setting it on the edge of the roof. The blue long sleeved shirt was also coated in soot but, surprisingly, hadn't been burned badly because of the flames. Conan looked at the wig the thief was sporting and smirked. Mage caught the action and returned it with a smirk of her own, "Recognize the wig's style, Tantei-kun? I picked it out just for you."

Ran took a closer look at the black wig, fashioned in the style of Night Baron's choice of haircut, and smiled, placing the first aid kit on the ground and opening the metal box. She started shuffling through the contents while Mage seated herself on the roof, leaning back on her gloved hands and gazing at the stars. "Drat, I don't have enough alcohol pads. Uh, Conan-kun, do you think you could start cleaning Mage-san's cuts?"

"Hai!" Conan replied, pulling out a towel and a bottle of water. Ran hurried down to the building to find the necessary supplies. Conan wet the towel as Mage rolled up her pant leg past her knees. Conan set off to work.

"I guess I just paid you back," Mage commented.

"...?..." was Conan's reply.

"For helping KID and I with that murder case," Mage reminded the boy.

"Hmm… Is this really okay?" Conan mumbled.

"What repaying you?"

"No, letting Ran clean up your wounds. I'm sure you're capable of doing that yourself and if you let Ran go through with this, she'll know what you've tried so hard to conceal," Conan said, dabbing the bloodied knee with the wet towel.

"I _am_ capable of doing this myself but like I said earlier, I've been meaning to officially meet your girlfriend."

"Urusai, she's not my girlfriend. And you've already met Ran. Haven't you been using Kasuma-chan as a disguise much more often than you would normally? Obviously there's a reason for that."

"Fine, fine... She's not your girlfriend. And of course I've _met_ her but that was through a disguise like you said. Meeting someone like that isn't the same. In fact, I haven't been using Kazuki as much now… I don't want her to lose your trust. Seems she just recently got it." Mage shrugged, "Everything _has_ a purpose or reason but mine wasn't to meet people around you. It was to find out what happened to you, Kudo Shinichi. And letting Mouri-san do this is letting her pay me back for helping you back there, it's her way of showing gratitude… at least that's why I _think_ she's doing this. Plus, having a measly two people know my 'secret' isn't too bad. I can live with that."

'Baaro. It's because she's the type of person who weeps over other peoples' pain.' "I'm sure more than two people know you're female," Conan remarked.

Mage looked past Conan at the city, "They don't have concrete evidence. It's all circumstantial… No proof. I may not be a detective but I'm not accepting guesses." Mage looked at the boy, "_You_ have found proof, albeit more of a confession… And soon will Mouri-san. I will accept only those for the time being. And of course, I'm sure the Kaitou KID knows about my gender given that he works alongside me. That fact was pretty much guaranteed." Mage looked at the boy, "By the way… how are _your_ wounds? Have they been treated?"

Conan nodded, unconsciously bringing a hand up to the bandage around his head, "It wasn't very serious to begin with, thank goodness… Ran was worried enough. Just some first degree burns. What about you? I'm surprised you came out of that with practically no sign of burns anywhere."

Mage shrugged, pulling off a glove to examine her bare hand, "I'm surprised too. But I guess I really shouldn't be… this uniform was one of the ones sent to me from KID. His suits must be fire-proof."

Conan stopped briefly, "Is he alright? KID I mean."

"He's just fine. He made his way outside with the crowd. Only you and I were on the higher floors so there were no fatalities, thankfully. It's nice that you were worried about KID."

Conan barely managed to say 'baaro' before Ran returned, holding a small handful of small, wrapped up alcohol pads. Ran finished what Conan had gotten done and set the now red towel aside to rip open one of the small packages she had brought up. Ran unfolded the wipe and began applying it to the knee of the thief. Mage hissed from the sting and temperature of the pad but otherwise put up no protest. The process was repeated on the other wounded knee with yet another hiss from the thief. "I guess this means you're female," Ran murmured after some time, moving on to the larger gash on the thief's leg and the smaller wounds covering Mage's body, at least the _visible_ wounds_._

"What makes you say that, Mouri-san?" Mage inquired.

"Well, um, no offense but men wouldn't usually uh… paint their nails bright pink." Ran explained.

"Interesting, Mouri-san, but it's quite possible that I used nail polish for a female disguise. And I take no offense by that comment," the thief purred.

"Hmm, that _does_ make sense." Ran applied more band aids to some more small, open cuts and added, "And you're not as physically… _shaped_, for lack of a better word, as the average male."

Mage smiled. "True but it's possible that I don't have enough testosterone. A body-builder's body wouldn't make female disguises any easier."

"I guess so," the girl murmured. "Uh, do you have any other wounds?" Ran asked quietly.

"No, I don't believe I do," Mage said smoothly.

Ran's hand reached over to the chest of the thief but not before said thief brushed away her hand and pulled down the pant legs. "I take that as a no?" Ran murmured, looking extremely embarrassed as she said this. The girl looked down at Mage's ankles. "What are those?" she asked, pointing to the white brace-like objects around both of Mage's ankles.

"Active Ankles… Ankle supports pretty much. When you're career is running about the country stealing various diamonds and gems, you can't afford to sprain your ankle." Mage shrugged. Suddenly, she smirked, "And I just gave you two undeniable proof about my gender." Ran and Conan exchanged confused looks. Mage smirked and pointed to the bottom of her shoe. "I thought Tantei-kun noticed it but I guess not."

Ran and Conan, yet again, exchanged confused looks. Mage sighed, "Might as well, since it's only you two. I honestly don't care if you two know as long as you don't say anything… shoe size."

'Oh…' Conan thought, smacking himself mentally. 'The shoe sizes for men compared to the equivalent shoe sizes for women are different.'

"…Why _do_ you steal… as your career I mean," Ran asked, thinking back to one of Mage's earlier comments, timidly glancing up at the thief's face… well, what she could _see_ of it anyway.

"That's for me to know and you to always wonder about." Mage set a finger against her mouth, "A magician never reveals his secret." Mage suddenly stood up, "Well, I'll be going."

"Ah, chotto," Ran stood up quickly.

"Hmm, nani?" Mage looked back at the teenager.

"Uh iie… arigato," Ran mumbled quietly.

"Dou itashi mashite," Mage answered, opening her glider and jumping off the roof, flying away towards Tokyo Tower.

**Final Notes: …Wow… looking back, I realized that I put quite a bit of religion-related stuff in here… Um… oops? Didn't really want that to happen *nervous glance* I did not want to add anything religious in this story… hope no one had any…negative reactions to it…  
****Well now that the hotel is ruined, they'll have to build it again… how annoying is that? XD  
****I am so bad with stuff regarding conclusive evidence… I'm still not satisfied with the whole rooftop revelation…  
****I would have included the heist note for the next target but I can't for a few reasons. 1) A bomb destroyed the hotel so KID and Mage's schedule kinda got sidetracked… therefore they sorta need to 'recuperate' from the bombing. 2) I haven't come up with a riddle for the next heist as of yet. 3) I keep being bombarded with prospective scenes and snippets for future chapters and I need to write/type them down otherwise I'll forget (I know I will… I can have really bad memory at times…especially when they count)**

**I don't have a preview written up but I **_**will**_** tell you that someone is targeted. To find out **_**who**_** you'll have to wait until next time.**


	17. The Targeted Detectives (14)

**A/N: Part eight of the Pandora Arc! Oh, and please vote on the poll on my profile page. I'd really appreciate it… I'm not sure how I want to split up that arc… I know you guys and gals are out there reading my story so please give me feedback..  
****Warnings: Gunshots… double meanings, and musical references (I do not own) (And if you know me well enough, you may be able to guess what musical it is…)  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Ahh! School's One Acts were **_**amazing**_**!**

**Today's quote is: "And then God said, 'Oh my god!'"—Sci-Fi Fantasy Club Mad Lib**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: The Targeted Detectives—Start

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
November 8, 7:39 AM

"Ne, did you hear about the serial killer on the news?" Sonoko asked Ran as she got ready for school.

"Yeah. He just struck again somewhere in California. Reporters here are worried that he'll come to Japan soon."

"Ran," Sonoko looked at her friend, "You'd better watch out. If he comes to Japan, your father will probably be one of the targets."

"Who would be a target?" Kasuma asked as she entered the room, twirling her lock picking tools around her fingers.

"Haven't you heard from the news?" Sonoko inquired, facing Kasuma now.

"I don't watch the news. It's so constantly depressing," Kasuma shrugged. "Besides, my TV has been acting up and I haven't gotten around to fixing it… I've been busy at the mall."

"You picked the lock again?" Ran asked the girl, sweat-dropping. Kasuma's grin was her only answer. "Maybe I should get the lock replaced."

"Tsk, tsk, now you know that wouldn't work," Kasuma chided, waggling a finger. "I'd just find some _other_ way to pick the lock open. Besides, this gives me practice."

'Practice for what?' Conan mentally asked, drawing his focus back to the reporter on the news.

"The Detective Serial Killer struck again, this time finding a target in southern California. The victim, one Richard Moore, was found just south of Interstate 5 by Disneyland's Toontown with a single bullet wound to his chest—" The reporter was cut off as Kasuma turned off the TV.

"What did I tell you? Too depressing… _all_ the time," Kasuma mumbled, slinging her book bag across her shoulder.

"But aren't you worried, Kasuma?" Sonoko asked the teen, "There are a lot of famous detectives here in Japan. Nemure no Kogoro is here as well as Hattori Heiji, Kudo Shinichi, and Hakuba Saguru… And _you_, you're a detective too. You're not the _least_ bit worried?"

Kasuma shook her head, "I can protect myself and so can Mouri-san, Hattori-kun, Shinichi-kun, and Hakuba."

Sonoko sighed, shaking her head, "Fine, be carefree… but it's still troublesome."

"On another note, did I tell you about the heist note that got sent to Division Two?" Kasuma asked, changing topics. She looked down at Conan and grinned briefly.

'Well, she told _me_ but she didn't say anything to Ran or Sonoko,' Conan thought, rolling his eyes.

"Heist note? When?" Sonoko asked.

"Nakamori-keibu received it yesterday morning at nine-ish. Hakuba probably has it down to the millisecond but I didn't ask for an exact time… Anyway, _this_ note is formatted much differently than all the previous ones sent out."

"Different how?" Ran asked as she grabbed her book bag.

Kasuma continued as she exited the agency with Haibara in front of her, "First off, it was entirely in English, well… letters of the alphabet. The riddle itself was scrambled almost past recognition and they only decoded it because Hakuba recognized the cipher used." Kasuma dug in her book bag and pulled out a white sheet of paper. "Take a look… you won't get it right off the bat."

Ran accepted the paper and stared at its contents, Sonoko reading over her shoulder. Ran began carefully reading off the scrambled note, "**Rat teg tsi Beh eul ooM ePn edn cal sie Eta dok uMa ues iT.m iem ies thg nta hgi aD.t iet ets fan ret luf oml MDI ega…** _This_ is the heist note?"

"Yeah. KID and Mage used a cipher that's pretty hard to crack unless you know what you're looking for. It's probably why they used English since Japanese would have been much worse."

"What was the cipher?" Sonoko asked, quirking an eyebrow at the note, "'Cause I can't understand that at all!"

"The cipher is Tri Code," Kasuma stated. "Try taking each three lettered word and reversing the order… do that to every set of three. It should be easier to understand that way." She looked behind herself to glance at Conan, "Conan-kun could tell you. I told him about the cipher when he caught me staring at the note."

Conan glared at the teenager, 'Liar.'

"Conan-kun?" Ran looked at the shrunken detective.

"Uh… well… When you reverse the order of each word you'd get **'Target is the Blue Moon Pendent. Place is at Ekoda Museum. Time is eight at night. Date is ten after full moon. KID Mage.'** They didn't make the riddle any more complicated than that," Conan mumbled, still glaring discretely at Kasuma.

"Well at least they know exactly what, where, and when the heist will take place," Ran remarked, returning to note to Kasuma who pocketed it. "When was the full moon?"

"The second of November, which makes the heist date the twelfth of November. Ekoda Museum is quite a bit away but I'm sure Conan-kun will still want to come. I can accompany him if you can't make it," Kasuma offered to Ran, ruffling Conan's hair briefly.

"You'll be going?"

Kasuma nodded, "I'm not working on the twelfth because of some sort of inspection… or renovation," the teen shrugged. "I was zoning out when Kaemon-san told all of us, so I don't remember what he said. School-wise it shouldn't be too much of a problem since the heist is on a Friday, so no one will be falling behind…" Kasuma paused to examine Ran, "_Will_ you be coming?"

"I guess, I have nothing planned," Ran answered as the time drew nearer for Conan and Haibara to split and join their friends.

* * *

Internet  
Video Chat via World Wide Web  
November 8, 12:33 PM

"How long's your lunch break?" Mage asked as she set her laptop on the cold cement of the roof she was sitting upon.

"About thirty minutes," was KID's brief reply. The magician-thief ripped off the plastic covering of his bento and drew out chopsticks, twirling them in his hands. "I assume yours is about the same."

"You assume correctly," Mage answered, pulling a blue fleece blanket out of thin air and wrapping it around her to block out the chilly weather.

"Ah, before I forget… How are you wounds? I know it wasn't serious and all, but have they all closed up?"

Mage shrugged, "They're just fine. Doesn't bug me at all." Mage opened another website, reading the main article, "Let's just hope that the Detective Serial Killer doesn't strike at our heist… since we attract the attention of a few famous detectives, our heist—to Killer-san's eyes—may be the perfect situation to strike. And even better for him or her, it could be covered up as a misfire by our Sniper-sans."

"Speaking of our snipers… do you know the names of the ones that always shot at you?" KID asked, focusing intently on his lunch.

"T-Rex and Raven were the snipers. Crocodile was my 'Snake' figure in Europe… I haven't seen any of them in Japan as of yet, so they must have stayed there. It's a good thing too… I was getting really tired of bantering with them. They're so annoying, although… I _did_ have fun teasing Crocodile, he's so temperamental."

"How did you get their names? I could never find out who were the ones shooting at me," KID said, pausing to twirl his chopsticks again.

"I heard their names from Crocodile…" Mage paused, smirking, "And I _may_ have stalked them once or twice… maybe more." Mage shrugged, "Gotta keep track of those chasing me."

KID grinned, silently agreeing. "Oh, and about the outline you sent me… you wanted me to double-check the timing, right?"

Mage nodded, "I need to be sure so I can arrange everything else. I hope my algebra hasn't failed me but I want you to check just in case."

"Then I'll get right on it."

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Beika Park  
November 10, 4:17 PM

The laughter of three children and one teenager drifted up from the tennis courts to the figures atop the nearby hill. Eyes closed, hands underneath her head, Kasuma lay on the hill, patiently waiting for Conan to speak. The shrunken teenager was currently engrossed in a packet of papers covered in plain, black text, sitting cross-legged on the grassy hill. Several feet away, Haibara sat sulking, her arms crossed delicately as she glared at nothing in particular. Kasuma opened one eye and looked over at Haibara before turning her head to peer at Conan. Conan met her gaze briefly before he focused back on the packet. After a while, Conan set down the papers and shook his head. "It's all great information but there's not enough of a lead to give me any sort of head start," Conan sighed. "On another note, I can distinctly discern that there were at least two different people sending out this information… which makes me even more sure that the person sending these e-mails is Mizunashi Rena."

"'Mizunashi Rena'… I know she's a famous reporter, but what else do you have on her? None of the e-mails stated the codenames of the senders."

"Her codename is Kir. She's a CIA agent who infiltrated the Organization and sends reports to the higher-ups in the Company. Her real name is Hondou Hidemi—"

"Wait," Kasuma sat up abruptly, resting an arm on her knee, "Hondou as in this 'Eisuke' person you mentioned?"

"Y-you remembered that?" Conan stuttered, taken aback.

Kasuma tapped her temple twice, "Good memory."

Conan nodded once, then continued, "Yes, as in Hondou Eisuke. She's Eisuke-kun's older sister. Their father, Ethan Hondou, was also a CIA agent but he was killed to keep Rena-san in the Organization. When we disrupted one of _Their_ plans, we ended up with Rena-san in our care. She crashed her motorcycle and fell into a coma. The FBI brought her to a hospital in secret to have her wounds treated. The Organization tried to smoke out her location and eventually found where we were keeping her. _They_ flooded the hospital with patients and were able to locate her room. That's when Akai-san and I came up with a plan to seamlessly get Rena-san back into _Their_ hands while still being able to stay in contact with her."

"'Akai-san?' Who is that? An FBI agent?"

Conan nodded once again, "It seems he used to be in the Organization as well but left when he was found out. If I remember correctly, his codename was Rye and he worked under the alias Moroboshi Dai. His girlfriend, who was also in the Organization, was murdered by Gin when a bank robbery went wrong."

"Moroboshi Dai… he wouldn't happen to have long black hair and olive green eyes, would he? He always wears a stern expression and is very secretive."

"Have you met him?" Conan asked.

Kasuma shook her head, "My parents knew someone under the codename Rye and since _They_ don't reuse codenames, it's got to be the same person. My father had a binder of compiled information on various members of the Organization…" Kasuma noticed the joyful change in Conan's expression, "But don't get your hopes up, Conan-kun. My father took it with him when we fled to America so there's a _very_ high chance it was destroyed in the fire. And if there are, by any chance, copies then I have no idea where he would have put them." Kasuma lay down again, closing her eyes once more. "I think, after connecting the dots, I know who his girlfriend is as well. Long brown hair and blue-grey eyes, correct?"

Conan froze, looking down at Kasuma. "Masaka… Have you been tracking _Their_ movements?"

Kasuma raised her hands in a shrug. "I do what I can. It's hard to get a hold of Japanese newspapers if you live in Europe or America and I never really found much by way of Internet."

"Are you two done endangering yourselves?" Haibara's cold voice floated in. The scientist in question had moved closer to the two conversers and was giving them, more so Conan, a hard glare.

"Relax Ai-chan," Kasuma drawled, "We're in the middle of a very barren hill with no one else up here and last time I checked, there was no unusual device anywhere on my person."

"Ne, Kasuma-chan, several of the e-mails mentioned 'Waykamatayan.' What_ is_ that? Is it a code name?" Conan picked up the packet and flipped through the pages.

"It can't be," Kasuma shook her head. "The Organization has alcoholic codenames and 'waykamatayan' defiantly does _not_ sound like an alcohol."

"You would know," Haibara responded, "After all, you practically have a bar in your house."

"And it seems you've done lots of exploring." Conan quirked an eyebrow. "It was my parent's doing," Kasuma explained. "I stay away from that room; especially a few particular alcohols… wouldn't want to suddenly find that I like Gin or Vodka… that would be horribly ironic."

"And you'd get yourself drunk," Haibara muttered, staring at the grass by her feet.

"Maybe, maybe not… anyway, that's beside the point. Waykamatayan can't be a codename but it might be an experiment of some sort. Like I told you earlier," Kasuma winked, "The Organization _loves_ science experiments."

"But what does waykamatayan _mean?_ It's gotta have _some_ sort of meaning behind it. It's a language I don't recognize but what would the translation be?" Conan shook his head, "Haibara said Vermouth mentions it… when she warns the new recruits about rebellion or betrayal."

"Sorry, I'm coming up blank," Kasuma answered, shrugging briefly.

'Liar,' Haibara mentally accused, 'I'm _sure_ you recognize _at least_ the language, if not the meaning as well. Why won't you say anything? Are you _still_ hiding something? You say it's safe to discuss the Organization, yet you hide details from me _as well as_ Kudo-kun. If you want _Them_ gone then _you_ have to be the one willing to share information. You have the most knowledge in regards to the Organization. Far more than I was able to retain.'

Kasuma seemed to catch Haibara's incredulous gaze and gave the scientist a small smile. The teenager soon drew her attention away from the two shrunken teens and focused in on Ran's request for her to join their tennis match. Mumbling under her breath, Kasuma got up and ran down the hill, leaving Conan and Haibara to their own thoughts.

* * *

Ekoda, Japan  
Ekoda Museum  
November 12, 7:35 PM

Even outside the museum, the members of the Task Force were crawling about, patrolling the grounds and reporting back via radios. The museum itself was nothing to really boast about, fairly small in size but filled with a plethora of exhibits. Currently, besides the gemstone exhibit where the target was, one of the most popular exhibits was the traveling Ancient Cultures Exhibition, stocked full with ancient vases from Classical Greece, old tables covered in cuneiform or Sanskrit, and miniature replicas of ancient ruins. Nakamori had, with the consent of the museum manager, closed the museum for the heist night, blocking off all entrances and exits except the ones that led to the gemstone exhibit. Almost all of the precious stones on display had been transported to other rooms in the museum, leaving only the ones too heavy to carry out.

Ran, Kasuma, and Conan walked past the officers guarding the doors, cheeks free of any kind of discoloration, due to the fear of the officers lest they tick off any of the teenagers. Hakuba was just inside the doors, rubbing his cheek briefly before spotting the newcomers. "It seems the Task Force spared you two. I hope they aren't getting lazy."

"They're nowhere _near_ lazy… just terrified," Kasuma answered, smiling brightly. "A couple well-directed glares and they're shaking in their boots."

Hakuba sighed, his head falling into his hand, "You've traumatized them, Kasuma. That's not the best plan to come up with."

"Sorry," the girl shrugged, not looking in the least bit apologetic, "But I don't appreciate any form of skin tugging… it's rude."

"And it's _protocol_," Hakuba stressed. He sighed, "Whatever. Anyway, we should head in."

Conan, acting like the 'excited little boy,' ran ahead of the teenagers, following the very direct path to the gemstone exhibit. Running through the last door, the teenagers several meters behind him, Conan scanned the room. The room had a total of six display stands inside, all the others locked up in other rooms. In the center sat the Blue Moon Pendent, an aquamarine set in a white gold frame hanging off a white gold chain. Around the frame were smaller inlaid diamonds that rested on the edge of the pendent. Conan walked over to the heist target and peered up at the jewel. 'Damn this short height,' Conan cursed as he struggled to get a good look at the gemstone.

"Wait…" Kasuma was also looking at the jewel. "Nakamori-keibu… this isn't, by any chance, a fake… is it?"

"It's a fake," Nakamori grumbled, "The real one is hiding somewhere else… How could you tell?"

"This one is more opaque than the real pendent… a flaw like this would catch KID and Mage's attention immediately," Kasuma murmured, examining the jewel more closely.

"That's what I'm hoping for," Nakamori responded. "I'm gonna make them sweat looking for the _real_ one."

"Will that really work?" Ran asked, skeptical.

"Of course it will!" Nakamori exclaimed.

"At least he's confident about it," Kasuma murmured.

Nakamori glanced at his watch, then moved away from the group to speak with several other members of the Task Force. Kasuma turned back to the jewel case, sighed, and rubbed her temples lightly with one hand. "I _highly_ doubt this plan is going to work, Nakamori-keibu," she muttered. Her hand dropped and she looked at the doors leading out into the hallway. "Oh well… Might as well scan the rest of the museum to kill time."

"I'll come with you… it'll be better if we stay in groups," Hakuba reasoned.

Kasuma nodded while Conan grabbed Ran's wrist, exclaiming, "Let's go too Ran-neechan! I wanna see the rest of the museum!" Kasuma held back a snicker, instead settling for a small smirk and exiting the exhibit behind Hakuba.

It wasn't until they had passed their third door when the silence between the four was broken. Keeping his voice quiet, Hakuba glanced at Kasuma and asked, "Are you starting your usual routine early this year?"

"'Usual routine…?' What gave you that impression?" Kasuma asked, quirking an eyebrow. Silently, Conan looked up at the two teens, Ran too busy exploring the museum to notice the conversation.

"Well your attire for one… it's more casual than usual."

Kasuma looked down at her purple sweatshirt and blue jeans. She huffed, crossing her arms across her chest. "And so what if I feel like wearing this? It's comfortable… and warm. Winter's approaching and I'd like to avoid getting frostbite… or hypothermia, thank you very much."

"Alright, alright, I get your point," Hakuba cut in, shaking his head. He turned away briefly to test the door nearest him, checking to make sure it was locked, Kasuma doing the same to the door next to her. Hakuba pulled out his pocket watch as Conan and Ran closed the few meters between them. "Twelve minutes and thirty-five seconds until eight… We should head back."

"Before they lock us out in paranoia… ne, Hakuba?" Kasuma grinned, nudging the detective's side.

"Shut up. That time Mage got an officer prancing around with _my_ _face_ while I was locked in the damn _bathroom stall!_ Mage had the gall to let an unsuspecting officer walk around looking like me and I won't let it happen again!" Hakuba gritted out, glaring at Kasuma.

"Of course you won't… 'cause we don't need _two_ time-conscious freaks running amuck, now do we?" Hakuba responded by muttering unsavory remarks under his breath, Kasuma's grin widening as she flicked his temple. "You _do_ realize I understand English _perfectly_, don't you? Oh, and so does Conan-kun," Kasuma remarked, looking at Conan briefly. "And I wouldn't try Latin either since I know _that_ as well."

"You're not going to start showing off, are you?" Hakuba glanced at Kasuma, "I don't need to be reminded of all the languages you know… I already accepted that you know many more than I do."

"I wasn't planning on showing off," Kasuma pouted. "I hardly even _use_ half the languages I've learned."

"Which ones would those be?"

Kasuma responded by counting on her fingers as she said, "Japanese, English, Latin, and Visayan. Oh, and I've been using French more often now… did you know Kaito's fluent?"

"Honestly? That doesn't surprise me," Hakuba muttered, pulling open the door to the gemstone exhibit in order for the group to slip in. As soon as the doors closed, the lights in the room went out. The blackout was brief, however, but when the lights flickered back on, there was a new addition to the room.

Perched upon the jewel case, with the jewel already in hand, Kaitou KID examined the blue pendent, a frown etched on his face. The thief tsked, "Keibu, whatever happened to the beautiful lady that was supposed to be in here?" KID looked down at the empty jewel case before replacing the fake in the case. The thief stood.

"KID!" Nakamori bellowed.

"Why hello to you too, Keibu~!" KID crooned.

"You're early," Hakuba stated, quirking an eyebrow at the thief.

KID shrugged, smirking, "A little bird told me something of interest happened here so I decided to check it out early. Besides," KID's mouth tugged into a full-blown grin, "I've missed the witty banter I engage in with you wonderful justice seekers… Hey, that reminds me of a musical—" KID cut himself off as many Task Force members charged, with the intent of dog-piling the thief. Laughing, KID launched off the jewel case and found a new perch above a high window.

Rubbing her temples, Kasuma muttered, "I hope he's not thinking about the musical _I'm_ thinking of…"

Grinning once again, KID quoted, in perfect imitation of the character, "'Elphaba, where I come from, we believe all sorts of things that aren't true. We call it history.'"

Kasuma groaned, "He was."

Looking at Kasuma, KID's grin widened, enough to put the Cheshire Cat to shame, "Tantei-chan! So good of you to visit! I haven't seen you in a while~!"

"Don't waste your breath, KID. I have two words: Not. Interested. So direct those incoming comments towards your millions of screaming fan-girls."

"Stingy," KID muttered, an expression that could only be classified as a pout gracing the thief's face. It disappeared quickly, the grin returning. "However, I'd rather go after a certain blue jewel…" KID tapped his chin in faux thought, "I wonder where she went?"

"Where's Mage?" Hakuba asked, pointedly ignoring KID's earlier inquiry.

"Aibou?" KID shrugged elegantly, "Who knows? Should be around here _somewhere_. After all, Aibou was the little bird I mentioned earlier."

'Which means she's somewhere in this room,' Conan thought, looking around said room. Many other room occupants looked around the room as well.

KID let out another laugh, "Don't waste your time… Aibou won't be seen unless Aibou _wants_ to be seen."

"He's dodging from any and all pronouns regarding Mage," Conan mumbled, the only other people hearing being Hakuba and Kasuma, who were closest to him.

"It makes sense," Kasuma said, crouching down to reach Conan's level. "KID doesn't want to insinuate anything about Mage's gender. He's avoiding any preconceptions about his partner."

"Of course… his efforts wouldn't do much good anyway since most of the world already thinks Mage is male. Although there's a small population who believe Mage is female… they have no proof to confirm _either_ speculation but that doesn't stop people from insisting," Hakuba commented, glancing down at Conan and Kasuma briefly before tracing a path right back to KID.

"Now, I wonder… who has the Blue Moon Pendent in their claim?" KID was saying as he traced a lazy circle around the room with his eyes. KID's comment led several of the room's occupants to whip their heads around, searching for any incriminating actions. Another manic laugh was let out as the room filled with pink smoke. Everyone in the room immediately moved to cover their noses and mouths but the smoke cleared faster than should have been possible. KID was off his window perch and had relocated to a spot on the ground not two feet from Hakuba. The thief grinned, "Thank you for protecting the Pendent, Tantei-san~! I'll be borrowing it now." KID brandished the aquamarine in Hakuba's face before launching himself backwards to avoid the lunge the detective made.

"H-how did you—?" Nakamori stuttered, gaping openly at the thief.

KID grinned, "A magician never reveals his secret." With that, the thief ran towards the nearest exit, several officers already moving to give chase. KID was about to disappear through the doors when the gunshot was made known. There was a short yelp, too short to distinguish gender.

"Who the hell fired that goddamn gu—"

"Holy _shit! That'll_ leave a bruise."

Hakuba found himself kneeling down next to a fallen Kasuma, the girl clutching her ribcage as he braced her up. 'Thank goodness… she's alright,' Hakuba thought. 'If _that_ was her reaction to being shot then she's definitely alright. Wait…' Hakuba raised an eyebrow. "'Bruise?'" He then noticed that something was missing… not that it was a bad thing. Kasuma grinned, the action being cut off by a brief wince. She unzipped her sweatshirt and brandished the thick, black vest underneath. "K-Kevlar… You…"

"Kasuma!" Ran exclaimed as she too knelt down next to the girl. Kaitou KID forgotten, the men who hadn't been stock still because of the gunshot (the more experienced men, it turns out), immediately began searching for the source of the gunshot. "Are you alright?"

Kasuma nodded, wincing again, "The worst I may have gotten would be broken ribs; the least being a few bruises."

"You'll need medical attention… no matter how small. I'll call an ambulance," Hakuba said, pulling out his phone. Kasuma plucked it out of his hand before he could call for help.

"I'll be fine. Just call Sonoda. He's a family friend as well as a doctor. He lives nearby." Hakuba nodded wordlessly and extended his hand for his and Kasuma's phones, which she handed over quickly. Hakuba searched the girl's contacts for aforementioned doctor and transferred the number into his own phone, hitting send when he was finished.

* * *

Ekoda, Japan  
Sonoda Residence  
November 12, 8:28 PM

Sonoda Hitoshi leaned back in his chair as Kasuma sat up holding back small winces as she moved. The doctor swiveled in his chair and faced the worried detective. "She'll be just fine, Hakuba-kun. Thanks to the Kevlar, her injuries were diminished, although she has a few cracked ribs. Bruising will be showing up but Kasuma-chan will heal in a few weeks."

"Oi, Sonoda. I told you to drop the honorific, didn't I?" Kasuma drawled, looking over at the older man.

Hakuba recalled an odd statement. "How did you know my name? I don't believe we've met before."

Sonoda smiled warmly, "Kasuma-chan has mentioned you several times. And since Kasuma-chan would only hand out my number to people close to her, I assumed you to be the 'Hakuba' person she talks about." Sonoda turned back to Kasuma, "Have you restocked your medicine cabinet? I'm sure all of the medicine in there is long since expired… since your house has been abandoned for six or so years."

Kasuma shot a very quick glance to Conan and Ran, who were sitting in a chair near Hakuba, Conan perched uncomfortably on Ran's lap. She faced Sonoda again and nodded, "I got them replaced a week or two after I returned to Japan."

"Then you should have some pain-killers if your ribs are bothering you. You should fully heal in a few weeks."

"Then Kasuma's fine? Thank goodness," Ran sighed, releasing her hold on Conan slightly.

Sonoda nodded, "Considering all the other times Kasuma has injured herself, this is nothing. She's broken her arms multiple times, as well her leg and has taken some pretty hard blows to the head." The doctor looked over at Kasuma, "You, child, are one resilient girl."

"You can't really blame me this time," Kasuma mumbled. "If there were a few more officers in the room, the culprit wouldn't have had a good enough shot. That and all the other detectives in the room were either moving too fast, blocked by other officers, or out of range."

"So you're thinking it was the serial killer?"

Kasuma looked at Conan, who had spoken. She shrugged, "Seems like it."

**Final Notes: *snick* I just couldn't resist… I **_**had**_** to name the detective Richard Moore (and I couldn't think of any other name at the moment)  
****And we find out a lil bit more about these snipers… they all have codenames pertaining to animals (motif? XD)  
****I only realized the truth behind my double meaning after I had read this chapter to my sister… hehe ^_^"  
****And it's been pointed out to me that Hakuba isn't one to stutter—and I realize this—but would **_**anyone**_** be able to keep a straight mind after their childhood friend got shot?**

**No preview for you but our story moves to the Kansai region where our favorite dark-skinned, hot-headed Osakan detective lives… We'll have fun there (*shudder*mysistermadethatsoundsodirty*shudder*)… unless something happens (*hinthint*). These next few chapters may end up shorter than usual… it all really depends on what and how I cram the information in as well as how I'm going to break each one up.**


	18. Day One (15)

**A/N: Part nine of the Pandora Arc! The up-coming chapters will probably be wishy-washy length wise… just so you all know. Oh, and I probably won't be updating much in the summer… at least, not actual, full chapters. I may add some shorter Extras but since it'll be harder to get Cai-chan to read my chapters. During the summer, I'll be working hard to get ahead of myself so I'll have lots of—hopefully—chapters to give you all. This chapter will give you the beginning of a fairly long sub-arc and after this sub-arc things will be speeding along pretty quickly.  
****Warnings: Traveling and crashes… wait what?  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): The connection between small things/actions and overall statuses seem to be very important in this story. (hintpossibly?)**

**Today's quote is: "Our forests are being destroying by forest."—Summer Camp Flyer (Rough Draft)**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day One

* * *

Ekoda, Japan  
Police Headquarters-Division Two  
November 14, 2:41 PM

"Bloody hell, not _this_ again," a certain British detective muttered, massaging his forehead. "This will be what… the fifth one?"

"I take it you're familiar with these?" Nakamori asked, sighing as he tossed the paper on his desk a little more harshly than necessary.

"Of course. Mage has been in Europe for almost his… or her entire career. I guess I was hoping Mage wouldn't pull together one of these here. Wishful thinking on my part… Sometimes I think Mage pulls WLH's just to push our buttons and give us the most horrible jet lag possible. I swear, that bloody thief _enjoys_ watching us collapse from exhaustion."

"WLH…?" Conan peered up at his fellow detective.

"It's less of a mouthful. Mage doesn't give these names so we just call them Week Long Heists, since that's exactly what they are," Hakuba explained.

"Why wouldn't you just let the police in the target cities take care of the heists?" Ran asked from the door of Nakamori's office.

"The police aren't as familiar with their tactics as those of us who have had first-hand experience. Besides… Mage makes it a habit to _invite_ us to the WLH's. It's basically a challenge, to see if we can catch Mage somewhere in the string of heists he or she pulls off." Hakuba looked down at the white note on Nakamori's desk, "That reminds me… Did you receive an envelope with the notice?"

"I don't think so… Why?" Hakuba walked over to the Inspector's desk and shuffled through the strewn about contents of the older man's work space. Nakamori began to protest but shut his mouth when Hakuba proffered a long, thick white envelope and swiftly opened it. "O-oi! What do you think you're doing?"

"Finding the invitations," Hakuba replied simply, extracting yet another white note. He read it aloud, "'Inside you will find a number of useful items. Don't lose them. They cost a lot. Without further ado, we invite the following to join us on our odyssey: Tantei-san/Holmes, Tantei-han, Tantei-kun, Tantei-chan, Task Force Head-san, Task Force 1, Task Force 2, and Task Force 3.'" As Hakuba was busy reading the brief note aloud, his other hand was busy on his phone. "Since this is a WLH, Mage probably included… ah, here they are." Hakuba snuck two fingers into the envelope and pulled out a fairly thick pile of…

"Tickets?" Nakamori asked, leaning over to better examine the objects. The man's eyes widened and he snatched the pile out of Hakuba's hand, "Holy hell… they're _all_ tickets!" The Inspector listed the different tickets, "Seven tickets for a train headed to Osaka from Tokyo and back… One train ticket from Osaka to Tokyo… Eight train tickets from Tokyo to Sendai… Eight ferry tickets from Aomori to Hakodate... Eight plane tickets from Sapporo to Seattle… And eight plane tickets from Seattle to Tokyo!"

"_What?_" Ran exclaimed, moving over to the desk, Conan on her heels. The girl gasped, "Oh kami… that's so much money!"

"Are these fake, Hakuba-kun?" Nakamori asked incredulously.

Hakuba shook his head, "They're _never_ fake and they're _all_ paid within legal limits."

"T-then that means… Mage paid for _everything?_ All those tickets; for all eight people? How?" Ran asked, still beyond shocked.

"I wish I knew," Hakuba sighed. "But Mage wouldn't give us fake tickets… never has. In this specific case, KID may have pitched in some money for the travel expenses but all the other cases, Mage has somehow been able to squeeze out enough money for all his or her invited 'guests' to attend the WLH… without resorting to illegal tactics. But it's not like they have a gold-mine of money, they never keep the stuff they steal."

"In any case, who are the first four people listed? I get KID and Mage want to invite me as the Task Force head and three other Task Force officers but the detectives… which ones are they talking about?" Nakamori asked the group as a whole.

"I'm 'Tantei-kun!'" Conan yelled happily.

"And I would be 'Tantei-san/Holmes'… the two names KID and Mage call me respectively," Hakuba said. "'Tantei-chan' is Kasuma."

"'Tantei-han' is most likely Heiji-niichan because of the modified honorific that is common in Osaka-ben and the fact that something's happening in Osaka," Conan offered up.

"And 'Tantei-chan' should be arriving any time soon," Hakuba mumbled, looking at his pocket watch. The office door was then opened and closed quickly. "Perfect timing."

Kasuma raised a quizzical eyebrow at Hakuba before shrugging, the action inducing a very brief, slight wince from the girl. "I heard from the White Horse that I was invited to a Week Long Heist."

"Tace, Kasuma," Hakuba muttered, glaring at the teen.

"I most certainly will not!" Kasuma retorted, glaring at her friend as well. By the desk, Conan sighed and shook his head dejectedly. "Anyway, what does the WLH say _this_ time?"

Nakamori picked up the notice and read it again, "'Suit up! It's time for a chase. Don't tire yourselves out before our finale in Seattle. Our odyssey begins in Osaka. Good luck and prepare yourselves for a Week Long Heist!

"'Our joyful journey begins in Osaka. Arrival begins at unum with the disappearance of Japanese Hope. Then cross the land to embark to Kyoto where the target is Russian Trust. Time: viginti unum. Next, follow the tracks NE where the tallest metal shape forever rests. At viginti the Greek Gold and Korean Love will join the phantoms. Immediately catch the train and journey up to Sendai, in which lies, in the city's main museum, the Fluttering Flower. We will claim our prize at duodeviginti. Next comes our flight, your drive to Aomori…' And it ends there."

"So… where's the rest of the note?" Kasuma asked.

"'The rest?' This is it," Nakamori stated.

"That can't be right. The beginning says the finale will be in Seattle, it can't end _there_… with Aomori. That's up near Hokkaido… nowhere _near_ Seattle, Washington," Kasuma responded. "What, is the rest of the note in invisible ink?"

"No, it's not," Hakuba said. "I checked when I read the weird cutoff. And there's nothing written on the back either."

"No punched out holes? 'Cause I know Mage used that method once before," Kasuma inquired.

Hakuba shook his head, "I thought of that too but there's nothing else. It stops with Aomori."

"Then I guess the second part's not there. Maybe they'll send the rest some time later?"

Nakamori leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyelids gingerly. "Damn thieves," he muttered. "What the hell are they planning?"

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
November 16, 3:39 PM

The two teens within the Kazuki study had cluttered the large space with books from several areas of the room, the texts scattered randomly along the floor. In one corner, in front of a blank space on the wall save for a large map, Kasuma stood, black pen pressed against her lips, studying the geography of Japan. On the other side of the room, perched high on a ladder rung, Hakuba riffled through book titles, searching for the correct subject. Exasperated, Hakuba rotated carefully on the ladder rung, "Kasuma, where's the Filipino dictionary?"

Kasuma swiveled, looking up at the teen with a deadpanned expression, "Don't be looking in the 'F' section. Filipino isn't a language, technically speaking. It's more of a sub-section of Tagalog. There's an English to Tagalog dictionary in the 'T' section of the language section."

"Well _sorry_. I'm not as adept as you are in the language department," Hakuba retorted, moving down the ladder to the 'T' section. Sighing, Kasuma turned back to the map. "Let's see… it says here that 'orange' is 'kahel,'" Hakuba murmured as he jumped down from the ladder and placed the open book face down on the desk in the study.

"I know," Kasuma replied tersely.

Hakuba looked over at the teen then smacked his forehead as he came to a realization. "You could have told me that, couldn't you?"

Kasuma shrugged, "I'm fluent in Tagalog and Visayan."

"Why didn't you say something?" Hakuba exclaimed.

"I didn't realize you were looking for the translation of 'orange,'" Kasuma answered, not moving her gaze off the map.

"What do you think I've been doing for the past half-hour?"

"I don't know. I was busy plotting out the route KID and Mage planned for the WLH. We're in a bit of a crunch time since we'll have to leave later tonight, so I figured I'd try and see how it was going to progress."

"So what have you got so far?" Hakuba asked, moving across the room to stand next to Kasuma.

"The WLH starts here in Osaka," Kasuma began, drawing a circle around the city. "They will try and steal the Kibou jewel at one am. Before that happens, we have to take the seven o'clock train from Tokyo to Osaka. Next, we drive to Kyoto," Kasuma drew a line from Osaka to Kyoto and circled the city. "They plan to steal the Bepa jewel at nine pm. After that, we take the ten o'clock train back to Tokyo where they plan to steal the jewels Chrysos and Salang at eight o'clock pm." Yet another circle was drawn around the targeted city. "In Sendai, at six o'clock pm, KID and Mage want to steal the 'Fluttering Flower,' whatever that is… probably have to look through museum websites to figure out _that_ one. The first half ends there and the second half that was sent today continues from there on."

"Have you started plotting out the second half of the notice?" Hakuba asked, pulling out said notice from his pocket.

"I was just about to start that," Kasuma answered, pulling out her own copy of the note. "Stupid thief starts off the note like _this_. 'Oops, my bad' my ass."

"Well, let's see." Hakuba read off the contents of the note. "'It seems I forgot to include the rest of the notice. Oops, my bad.

"'Aomori comes next. Have fun during the ride… get some rest for we attack at quinque to save Portuguese Glass. Sapporo follows suit but beware! Enjoy your swim to Hokkaido. Then embark from Hakodate but not until we meet again at the resting place of Filipino Orange at viginti duo. Travel north to Sapporo to protect the German Marble from our visit at duo. You then journey to Asahikawa to catch a glimpse of Basque Sphere before it is snatched away at viginti tria. Your next task involves crossing the Great Pacific. But don't rest then, for we will strike again for Polish Scarf. Our finale at Seattle will be great. Divide your teams well, for we split in order to attack the Italian and Gaelic Rings at nihil.

"'The aftermath requires of you to return to the Rising Sun and steal the one thing most important to the citizens of Planet Earth.'"

"The next location after Sendai is Aomori at…"

"'Quinque' or five o'clock am," Hakuba finished. "Glass in Portuguese is 'vidro' according to the dictionary you have in here, so Vidro must be at least _part_ of the name of the gemstone. After Aomori, it's Hakodate."

"They'll strike at 'viginti duo,' twenty-two hundred in military time, which makes it ten o'clock pm." Kasuma drew a line connecting Honshu and Hokkaido and circled Hakodate.

"Their target will be a gemstone with 'kahel' in its name. Then they'll move up to Sapporo to steal… you know German right?" Hakuba gave Kasuma a side-long glance.

"Semi-fluent," Kasuma answered. "If I remember correctly, 'marble' in German should be 'marmor.' After the Sapporo heist at two am, they'll go to Asahikawa."

"They'll strike at eleven o'clock pm and will try to steal…" Hakuba walked back over to the desk where he picked up a book off the floor. He flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for. "'Esfera…' I'm surprised you even _have_ this book. I'd never even _heard _of Basque before this heist note."

Haibara walked into the study just then. "Kasuma-" the scientist noticed the detective by the desk, "neechan, Neko and Winter are begging for entrance."

"Oh shit, I forgot they were out there," Kasuma exclaimed, capping the pen and slipping it into her pocket. She turned to Hakuba, "I'll be right back." Hakuba nodded and returned to the ladder to occupy himself. By the time Hakuba managed to locate the English-to-Polish dictionary, Kasuma had reentered the study, two smaller bodies trailing her. Haibara bent down, fondling one of the two with a small smile. Kasuma peered behind her and regarded the scientist, "She's really gotten attached to you, Ai-chan."

Hakuba jumped off the ladder, book in hand, "Akitas?"

Kasuma shook her head, "One of them is. The other's a Shiba Inu. Meet Winter," Kasuma set a hand gently on the head of the bigger white dog. "And Neko," Kasuma tilted her head towards the smaller black and tan dog Haibara was petting. "Winter is the Akita and Neko is the Shiba… However you can't really tell right now since Neko's just a puppy."

"How long have you had them? Since I _know_ you didn't have any animals in England," Hakuba inquired, crouching down to pet Winter. The white dog sat down, tail wagging.

"I got Winter at an animal shelter in America. Even though she was in the States, she's not an American Akita but an actual Akita Inu. I got Neko a few months ago. One of Sonoda's friends is a dog breeder and he gave Neko to him who, in turn, gave her to me."

"Hmmm… Wait… 'Neko?'" Hakuba looked up at Kasuma.

Kasuma let out a brief laugh, "It took you long enough. Yes, 'Neko.' I named a dog 'cat…' I am fully aware of that."

"…That rhymed," Hakuba mumbled, shaking his head slowly. "Anyway, I am _not _going to inquire about your motives behind giving a dog such a name. There are things with slightly more priority that need to be attended to."

"When you're done, can you come to the lab?" Haibara began, choosing her words carefully. "My… experiment has… not given me… desirable results."

Kasuma nodded, "I'll be there as soon as possible… Oh, remember to pack yourself some clothes since you'll be staying with Agasa-hakase for the next week."

Haibara nodded, "I've also got food and supplies for Neko and Winter. I'll bring those to Hakase's house as well… along with the dogs of course." Haibara departed, a very curious and happy Shiba following her. Kasuma shook her head, smiling as she watched Haibara's avid follower.

"That dog absolutely _adores_ Ai-chan," she muttered. "Then again, Ai-chan is the one who spoils her in some form or another… Anyway, back to the heist note. After Asahikawa, KID and Mage will hop a plane for Seattle where there'll be yet _another_ heist at some unknown time during the flight for a jewel with the name 'szalik.' When the plane lands in Seattle…" Kasuma suppressed a shudder, "I _hate_ that airport!" Kasuma pulled out a map of Seattle. "Anyway, they'll make us split up _again_ to—"

"Wait a minute," Hakuba interrupted. "Did I get out this dictionary for nothing? You already knew the translation? Are you fluent in _Polish_ too?"

"Yes, you got the dictionary for nothing. Yes, I already knew the translation and no, I am not fluent. I simply looked _that_ one up beforehand since I didn't have to scale the ladder to get it." Kasuma held out a hand, "Did you find the English-to-Gaelic dictionary, by chance?"

"I did." Hakuba walked over to the tan cushioned chair near the desk and picked up the book sitting atop it. He opened it to a bookmarked page and handed it to Kasuma.

"Okay, they'll be after the jewels with 'anello' and 'fainne' in the names and they'll strike at midnight. We won't really have much time to look for the locations right now but we can probably get some locals to give us information… Or I could scrounge around for some museum pamphlets. I'm pretty sure I have some from the States but I'm not sure if they're museums in Seattle."

"Have you packed? We'll be jumping around during the week so we probably wouldn't be able to book hotels but…" Hakuba let the end of the sentence drop.

"I've got a few spares in case they have something messy up their sleeves, but other than that, I'm good. I've placed several blankets in my car along with food for the ride… well; the food is currently in the refrigerator since we won't be needing it right away."

"'Car?'"

"There are a lot of people that have been invited this time, more than can fit in one of the patrol cars. I'm going to refund my train ticket to Sendai and instead drive there. That way, we'll have another vehicle for the rest of the Japan heists. It'll be too much of a hassle to transport the car to Seattle but I have a friend in Asahikawa who has already agreed to get my car back to Tokyo."

"You did a _lot_ of thinking about this heist," Hakuba commented, whistling briefly.

"I'm also trying to get in contact with Amunet. Her father often has business meetings in Seattle, so her family has a condo up there as well as a car. If I can get a hold of her, I'll ask if we can use the car for transportation."

Hakuba began picking up the fallen and scattered books, "Doesn't Julia hate it when you use that name?"

"Yes, but I love her given name more than her adopted name. It sounds prettier and it's utterly unique," Kasuma shrugged, taking down the map of Japan, folding it up, and joining Hakuba in returning the strewn about books to their proper places.

"…Isn't it Crystal who has a father in Seattle?"

"No, you're thinking of _Salem_. Crystal's father lives in Salem…" Kasuma paused and looked over at Hakuba. "You've only met Amunet, Crystal, and Rianna once, so how did you get this information?"

"Simple. I asked a lot of questions," Hakuba responded, moving over to the ladder.

"Should have expected that answer. After all, you need to do your 'research,'" Kasuma inserted air quotes as she set her pile of books on a random shelf by the ladder. "After we tidy up here, I need to pick up Conan-kun from the Detective Agency. You'll need to grab whatever you packed for the heist so I guess we'll meet at the train station."

* * *

Osaka, Japan  
Shin-Osaka Station  
November 16, 9:45 PM

"Did you get a hold of Hattori-kun?" Kasuma asked the shrunken teenager as the group of four officers and four detectives set foot on the platform in the Shin-Osaka train station.

Slinging his backpack across one shoulder, Conan kept his voice low, "I did. Nakamori-keibu also contacted Hattori's Tou-san so they already know of the upcoming heist. Hattori said he'd come and pick us up." Conan glanced behind him and sighed, "But no one's going to like his arrival. _Especially_ your childhood friend."

"Hey K-Ku-Conan-kun!" a happy voice exclaimed above the white noise of the train station.

"**Oh bugger… not **_**him**_**,"** Hakuba began in English before uttering quiet profanities under his breath.

"Thought ya'd _never_ get 'ere," Hattori said as he approached the group. "While I was waitin,' I managed ta find the location o' the Osaka 'n' Kyoto heists."

Behind Hattori, his father, Hattori Heizou, stood now talking with Nakamori, undoubtedly about the heist. The three men Nakamori had chosen to join him and Hakuba were crowded around the Police Superintendent of Osaka, discussing matters pertaining to KID and Mage. Hattori sent a wary gaze in Kasuma's direction before crouching down to whisper in Conan's ear, "What's that Neechan doing 'ere?"

"Kasuma-chan was invited to the heist," Conan shrugged.

"No, I mean what's she doing _here_… right next ta ya? Ya never really trusted her right?"

Conan sighed, "That doesn't matter."

"_Yes it does!_ That Neechan could blow yer cover, Kudo!" Hattori exclaimed, still keeping his voice at a low volume.

"It seems to me that you're doing a far worse job than I am," Kasuma murmured, "You _do_ realize I'm _right here_ and can hear _everything_ you're saying, right?"

"Ain't ya not supposed ta eavesdrop?" Hattori retorted shooting up to glare at Kasuma. Kasuma responded with a blank face, mouth drawn in a thin, calm line.

"_Hattori_, drop it. No point in trying to hide, Kasuma-chan already knows," Conan said, looking to quench Hattori's growing annoyance towards the teenager in front of him.

"What? What the hell 'r' ya thinkin'? Ye're only gonna get yerself caught in a tighter noose if ya keep tellin' people yer secret!"

"For the record, she found out herself. I didn't tell her anything," Conan defended, not in the least bit worried, although they_ were_ receiving weird looks from passer-byers.

"'N' how can ya trust this Neechan? She's _highly _suspicious, 'n' I'm saying this aft'r meetin' her only once or twice."

"I don't appreciate the hot-headed jabs you're directing at my Osananajimi, you git," Hakuba gritted out as he stopped beside Kasuma, who was suddenly shaking her head slowly.

"You… made him go… _British!_ That has never been accomplished before… disregarding my successes." Kasuma gave the British detective a side-long glance. "That's impressive." Hakuba rolled his eyes and walked back over to the Inspector, leaving the other detectives to themselves. Kasuma looked at Hattori, "And I was acting 'suspicious' because I was hiding stuff. Stuff that," Kasuma dropped her voice down to a whisper, "_Shinichi-kun_ now knows."

"She's got information on the Organization," Conan added quietly. "Far more information than Haibara, even though she's not an operative… or ex-operative."

"Then tell me this!" Hattori exclaimed, "How 'r' ya still _alive_? Ya gotta be pretty decievin' ta fool K—"

"LET'S," Kasuma interrupted, "finish this somewhere else… preferably somewhere more _private_, so we don't get any eavesdroppers."

* * *

Osaka, Japan  
National Museum of Art, Osaka  
November 17, 12:55 AM

"Hurry up, men! Only five minutes left 'till KID 'n' Mage arrive!" Heizou announced as a bulk of the Osaka Police rushed to get in their places surrounding the jewel, a diamond by the name of Kibou.

"Don't let your guard down for even a second!" Hakuba exclaimed, "Mage has a habit of making these heists short and sweet, _don't _expect Mage to make an exception just because he or she obtained a new partner."

At the edge of the room, Conan and Hattori scanned the exhibition hall with calm eyes, anticipating the arrival of the two famous Phantom Thieves. Nakamori and one of the Task Force officers, Takemura Keitaro, Nakamori's right-hand man, stayed inside the exhibition hall. The other two Task Force officers, Uehara Roka and Nozaki Tomeo, were stationed outside the museum that resembled bunny ears with the other half of the officers from Osaka. All three chosen Task Force members had been with Nakamori the longest, ever since the Task Force had conjoined twenty some years ago.

"What time is it?" Kasuma asked as she walked over to Hakuba from one side of the room.

"We've got a little more than a minute left," Hakuba answered, neglecting giving his childhood friend the exact number of seconds. "Be ready. Mage is _sure_ to make this quick."

"I know," Kasuma nodded, eyes flickering around the room.

Seconds later, the lights blacked out and the occupants could smell smoke from KID's smoke bombs as it filled the room. Cursing, Nakamori gave an order to get to the breaker and restore the lights. A minute or two passed before the lights were back on, and by that time, most of the pink smoke had cleared. With the dispersion of the smoke came two new figures. Smirking, KID perched upon the holding place of Kibou, white hat low, obscuring his face. Below him, leaning gently against the case was Mage, her white mask firmly in place. Shocked at the sudden arrival, the officers around the case stepped back, before realizing the situation and lunging for the two thieves. KID leapt off the case and landed on another glass case near the wall. Rapidly opening the case and extracting the jewel inside, Mage ducked, releasing several smoke bombs and disappearing in the cloud. "Now, now, Keibu," KID drawled from his new perch, "Can't we chat before you sic your officers on us?"

"To _hell _with your goddamned chat!" Nakamori yelled, shaking a fist.

"Come, now," the gender-neutralized voice cut in, "Why are you so against civil chatter before we must head out?" Mage reappeared very briefly before Nakamori before she vanished in another cloud of smoke, only to appear next to KID on the jewel case.

"If you have to go, then why do you want to 'chat' in the first place?" Hakuba asked, inching closer to the thieves.

"Eager to let us go? That's unlike you, Holmes. But… if that's what you _really_ want then we'd be happy to oblige." Yet another cloud of smoke appeared and with it KID and Mage _dis_appeared. Instinctively, the room occupants gave chase. The officers were out of the room first, followed by two of the invited detectives.

Hakuba looked behind him, "Kasuma, come on!"

Kasuma stared at the spot where the thieves disappeared briefly before she nodded, "Right." The two of them left, leaving the room empty.

A panel slid away from the wall, a gloved hand appearing on both ends of the wide trick mirror. Two wanted felons stepped in front of the magic prop and KID grinned, "Every time… They fall for it every time."

Mage grinned an unseen grin, "The benefits of having a magician for a relative…" she let the sentence drop.

KID nodded briefly, carefully leaning the trick mirror against the wall with Mage's help. "It's even better when there are _two_ magicians who can be easily harnessed." The grin returned and he winked.

"Anyway, let's get going. Our mode of transportation will be waiting for us at Tsutenkaku Tower. We need to go. We've got to travel five kilometers."

* * *

Kyoto, Japan  
Museum of Kyoto  
November 17, 8:53 PM

"Stop sulking… you were attacked, therefore you should lie back and recuperate," Kasuma was saying as she tossed the dirty bandages into the nearest trash can.

"I feel fine!" Hattori retorted, throwing his arms in the air. Hattori hissed and quickly lowered his arms as his muscles protested at the sudden movement.

"See? You can't even move your _arms_ without _something_ being strained," Kasuma shot back, frustration building up.

"So what if I crashed? Yer point? I ain't bedridden, so I c'n atten' the heist if I wanna!" Kasuma forced Hattori back into his chair as the injured teen attempted to stand up, an intimidation method in mind.

Kasuma threw her hands in the air angrily, "Ang iyong motorsiklo sumabog! Asahan mo ako sa naniniwala kayo ay pagmultahin? Tulala!"

Conan stared at the teen, head tilted slightly, 'How's he supposed to respond to that? He can't even _understand_ you!'

"—now I'll have ta get a new bike, dammit! Stupid asshole messin' with my bike," Hattori muttered, fingering the bandage around his knee and lower leg.

"Sabotage?" Hakuba inquired as he stopped next to Kasuma.

"Damn right it was, ya prick!" Hattori snarled at the half-Brit.

"Oi! Hakuba did nothing to you," Kasuma retorted, "Don't snap at him."

Hattori huffed and leaned back on the chair he was forced to sit in for the duration of the heist. Hakuba whispered into Kasuma's ear, "What happened with _him?_ He looks _pissed_."

"Yeah, he's pissed and I've never heard you use that word," Kasuma whispered back, quirking an eyebrow. "Anyway, on the way over to Kyoto from the museum, Hattori-kun crashed. The fuel tank on his bike was damaged, leaking fuel caught on fire with the impact. As I'm sure you can infer, the bike exploded and Hattori-kun was barely able to get away when it blew sky-high. I noticed the plume of smoke as I was driving over here and found him banged up pretty badly. We don't really know how severe it was, other than the visible burns on his body, so we're forcing him to stay out of this heist until he can be more thoroughly examined." Kasuma sighed, "He doesn't like that idea much, in case you couldn't tell. He's been snappy ever since."

"What exactly happened to the bike? Did someone tamper with it?" Hakuba asked, voice still low.

Kasuma nodded, "From what I could pick out, something was wrong with the breaking mechanism."

"My, my, does Tantei-han have to sit out? That's saddening," a familiar male voice sighed. "Whatever happened?"

The occupants in the holding room of Bepa, the Kyoto target, whipped their heads around to catch sight of KID as he looked down at Hattori and his wounds from a perch on a window. KID didn't stay there long, for seconds later, he released a smoke bomb and disappeared. When the smoke cleared, Mage had joined KID by another window, Mage tossing Bepa into the air with her free hand. Her other hand held an oddly shaped, silver gun which she was pointing at the ground below her. Behind the mask, Mage grinned, "Well, we'd love to stick around but there's a moving vehicle that needs to be caught in…" Mage glanced at an imaginary watch, "One hour. Ta-ta~!" And with that, Mage fired two projectiles at the floor and disappeared with KID in the cloud of thick, blue smoke.

**Final Notes: Well, the chapter length wasn't really that wacky… I wonder if I can keep that up?  
****I really don't have much else to say other than this: Where are you all? I **_**know**_** there are people out there reading my story and I'd like to hear from you all. Don't think you can slip past my radar; this story has gotten over 300 hits just in the month of May, so I know you're out there. Please let me know how I'm doing so far.  
****Oh, and I'd like to mention that all the locations for this and the upcoming heists are real places however, the exhibits and gemstones are not real..**

**Translation—****Ang iyong ****motorsiklo ****sumabog****! ****Asahan ****mo ****ako sa ****naniniwala ****kayo ay ****pagmultahin****? ****Tulala****!** (Your motorcycle exploded! You expect me to believe you're fine? Idiot!)

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan:**__**"Why are brats always chucking crap at me?"**_


	19. Extra: A Day In The Life Of A Thief

**A/N: Well, well. It's nice to see you all again. I hope your lives are…interesting? Strange? Awesome? Whatever it is. I don't think you need to know about mine (cause if probably involves "pointless" arguments about Yusei and Akiza being together with my friend who's convinced of... Yeah, I'm not gonna finish that. It has nothing to do with Detective Conan-or this story for that matter :D )  
****So… Enjoy!  
****Oh, by the way.. this Extra takes place a little less than a year or so after Mage's first heist.**

* * *

Extra: A Day in the Life of a Thief

* * *

I am a thief. More specifically: a Phantom Thief, an inexperienced Phantom Thief—much to my displeasure—but a Phantom Thief nonetheless. And damn is it annoying to keep up expenses on your own. Sure jobs significantly lower that worry but it's still a very large part of this career. Especially when a pre-teen slash teenager like Saguru Hakuba, or Holmes, as I call him, makes it his mission to break through your identity. Ironic how his initials stand for Sherlock Holmes.

Personally, as a thief, I'd prefer Arsene Lupin over Sherlock Holmes any day. Not that I've really paid much attention to the workings of the Gentleman Thief. Nope. I focus on magicians. I have to if I'm supposed to be Masked Magician. The dang word is in my name! Guys like Howard Thurston, Penn and Teller, Houdini, Kuroba Touichi and many others. Magic tricks, illusions, the like, they can do wondrous feats. They stun crowds, to the point where they are speechless, they deceive, and they create miracles. Walking on water, levitating, impaling a beautiful assistant, freeing one's self from inside a tank of water, changing an assistant into a dangerous animal and my personal favorite, making something disappear.

Disappearing is one of my best tricks. Whether it be myself or my target, they are my absolute favorite. Of course, I have to be careful. One of the taboos in magic: You mustn't repeat the same trick twice. I don't like taboos-or rules for that matter-but when your identity is on the line, you learn to play by the rules. Otherwise, twist them to fit the situation. I would only resort to that if it is deemed absolutely necessary. I may not like taboos, but I follow them. Right down to my appearance on heists.

Which brings me back to expenses. I try not to avoid using too much money, repairing what I can when it comes up. But sometimes they're just too far gone, in which case the damaged substance is destroyed. After all, I can't get my fingerprints recorded, not when I have a job to do. A very important job that heavily rests on steering free from any kind of jail cell. Handcuffs I can deal with, I know how to get out of them. I could probably even manage picking myself free of a jail cell but do I really want to test that out? Answer: Not really.

I let out a deep sigh. **"Necesse est. It is necessary."** I mumbled to myself, the phrase leading my inside my first stop: a small, homey shop specializing in different disguise (costumes, however you think of it), materials.

So now, in my guise of an excited teenage costume player (cosplayer.. whatever), I stride over to the shop owner. "Do you have it ready?" I ask in a foreign tongue. I worry not about the shop owner not understanding me. Why? Because… "Ah, you finally return, Mage." The man-late twenties, red hair, green eyes-smiles brightly, speaking in his rapid, native tongue of Gaelic… well, he understands the language. I'd be worried if he didn't, after all, that's what he was speaking before he migrated to this country.

"Well, obviously I've returned, I'm here. And like the Buddha said, 'Wherever you go, there you are.'" I leaned forward on the counter, "So is it ready?" I continued in the Gaelic language.

The man chuckled to himself, not bothering to respond, instead leading me into the storage room behind the cashier counter. Unpacked boxes met my eyes first, the brown items scattered the floor, the shelves hardly even being used. I whistled, **"Dang,"** I slipped back into the county's language, English, **"What happened to storing boxes on shelves? Isn't that the purpose of having such things around?"**

The man in front of me shrugged, pushing away boxes carelessly, **"I'm the only one running the shop right now, since I gave my other employees a vacation."** He began, switching seamlessly into English. **"And as you know, even though this is such a small store, it is a very popular place. I get lots of customers so I don't get much time to organize everything." **He chuckled to himself again, **"At least they're all labeled. I'd **_**never**_** be able to find **_**anything**_** if they weren't labeled."**

Finally reaching the back of the room, the store owner picked up a white box (the only white box) and scanned the top briefly before turning and weaving his way through the mess of cardboard boxes. I slipped out of the messy storage room and watched as he set the box on the counter pulling out a single sheet of paper snuggled within a manila folder. **"Thanks for doing this."** I murmured, searching my many hidden pockets for the item I needed.

"**No problem,"** he said, handing me the paper, **"You know the usual price."**

I snorted, **"Just put it on my tab."**

"**Ah yes, note: Remember to add another order to the tab of Masked Magician, the newest Phantom Thief on the loose."**

"**Ha, ha, ha,"** I replied sarcastically, finally pulling out a black wallet. **"Maybe I **_**should**_** start doing that."** Pulling out the desired amount, I passed the correct amount of money to the store owner. I moved to the other side of the counter and picked up the box. **"I hope you remember to keep up your part of the bargain in exchange for me keeping your involvement a secret."**

"**I don't know what you're talking about, **_**stranger**_**."** The man said, placing clear emphasis on the last word. I smiled, content with the response and departed, cradling the box under my arm as I opened the door.

* * *

Next step-suits. Now that Mr. Holmes is getting more serious in trying to capture me, my supply of suits is constantly in need of replenishing. Not only him, but the men (and women) in black; the members of Project Waykamatayan. Pests those members are. T-Rex and her sniping, Crocodile's annoying rants, Raven's bright orange hair (and those annoying bullets she shoots at me with), they're all pests. They make my job _that_ much harder. Really, is it so hard to get a peaceful heist night every once in a while, not that my heists are peaceful in the first place-what with my beautiful (and noisy) traps. Really, Holmes needs to lighten up… his father too. But no matter what I do, be it confetti or glitter or even dye, they just get denser… I wonder why.

After making a quick costume change (under a minuet, a personal record), my current persona, Richard Miller, departed from the public restroom, staring at his phone intently. I entered a lavish store from across the street and, once again, made a bee-line for the cashier counter where the store's manager was checking off the boxes of merchandise behind him. He looked up and met my eye, then smiled brightly, setting aside the clipboard to free his hands. **"Finally, your order's been sitting here for days! I was worried you wouldn't show Rick."**

I laughed 'nervously,' **"Sorry about that, Duncan. I haven't gotten much free time lately. And I wasn't able to sneak away from my boss."** I set the white box under my arm on the counter and shook my arms out.

Duncan nodded, **"What's in the box? Don't tell me it's from a rival company?"**

I shook my head fervently, **"No, no. Just some neckties I had to pick up."** I lied seamlessly.

Duncan nodded again, understanding the fabricated situation-not that he would _know_ it was fabricated. **"Let's see, your order should be… over, ah here we are!"** the store owner exclaimed, picking up one of the cardboard boxes, the longest and thinnest box amongst the crowd of merchandise.** "You ordered more than usual."**

"**Ah yes, the surplus was running low."** I said, not exactly a lie but not the entire truth.

Duncan showed me the receipt that accompanied the order. I had to hold back a whistle. I knew suits were expensive but really…? 'Damn, there goes half the year's payment.' I thought grimly. I sighed and reached for my (and by 'my' I mean Mage's, not _my_) checkbook, the checkbook that doesn't list any sort of name, no hint of identification. I wrote out the correct amount and ripped out the check, handing it to Duncan. He glanced at the check once and smirked, **"Still haven't gotten that name thing fixed huh?"**

I shrugged, **"I'm just being lazy I guess. Thanks for holding on to this,"** I tapped the box, **"Could you possibly put it in that bag behind you?"**

"**What bag…?"** Duncan turned, then huffed, **"Oh, that bag. I swear to God, you **_**love**_** doing this to me."**

I smirked, watching the man put the long and thin box inside the backpack that had magically appeared in the mass of cardboard boxes. He closed it as best as he could and hefted it onto the counter, pushing it over to me. Sliding the much smaller white box into another space on the backpack, I slid it onto my back, shifting it around, adjusting myself to the added weight behind me. I waved in thanks and left the store.

* * *

… Wigs are another problem. Don't get me wrong, I love wigs, they're amazing! But I like uniqueness, and that sometimes (most of the time) means finding more and different wigs. I looked at my watch. 'Shoot, I need to hurry up.' I think while letting out a huge sigh. There's the target, sitting on the edge of the cashier counter, the actual cashiers busy somewhere else. Even the store owner isn't at her usual post.

I look at the target again: a pretty large box considering what's inside it. 'That's gonna be a hassle,' I think, recalling a certain room. It's hard enough with the small space I call a 'lair.' It's difficult to store all my materials: suits, wigs, masks, makeup, magic items, in that small twelve by twelve space. It's a wonder I still have room in that cluttered 'closet.' **"Looks like a Get In, Get Out heist."** I mumbled to no one.

I slipped into the store and peered at the top of the box. Nodding my head, I sifted through my pockets until I found what I wanted. After a small switch, I departed the store, the only sign of me being there being the wad of bills and short note saying: Thanks for the package!

I looked at my watch again and then hurried south, stopping only when I met an apartment building. Instead of entering, I scaled the side of the building, a long rope tight in my hand. Flipping onto the roof, I created my own pulley system and reeled the long rope in. The weight on the other end finally decided to show itself and I quickly hauled the boxes-and backpack-over the railing and made my way to the unused storage room I knew was on this particular rooftop. The sun was setting as I ripped off the tape of one of the boxes, grabbing a red suit and matching pants (package deals are great, don't you think?) and rapidly changing into them. 'Heh, at least _They_ won't notice anything if I actually get shot at.' The next thing I did was remove the brown wig I was currently wearing and switching it with a _very_ long red wig (hey they match!). The last that was slipped on was the contents of the unopened white cardboard box. Well, unopened no longer for the packaging tape was removed quickly with experience and I picked up the item on top. Smiling my usually unseen manic grin, I set the white mask over my face. I stood up, the boxes now hiding inside the storage room, **"It's Showtime."**

**Final Notes: I hope you got what was going on at the end of this Extra. *grins* Wow, this was the first thing I've written that's from a thief's point of view. Did I do good? Please let me know! I really want to know what you think of my story.  
****This was supposed to be the fourth Extra I'd post but I'm stuck on the third one so I decided to post this one instead. If I can get over the Writer's Block, then I'll post it as well… hopefully before summer ends.**


	20. Day Two (16)

**A/N: Part ten of the Pandora Arc! I'm sooo sorry it took so long to get this up. At the beginning of the school year, it was really hectic with all the new classes and adjusting and Cai-chan had to refresh her memory on what was going on so I couldn't get this chapter up. But it's up now!  
****Warnings: Gunshot(s)  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): The Uehara-san who is attending the Week Long Heist has no relation to Uehara Yui (just so that's clear). When I was looking at a Japanese surnames website, I randomly selected Uehara for one of the Task Force officers (I only realized the same name problem when I was rereading the chapter)**

**Review Reply(s)  
****aly-angelflight: Since I can't send a PM as a reply… No, it's because I read that Shiba Inus often lick their paws and legs like a cat.  
****Stellar10: Thank you so much :D You have no need to worry… Hattori's stubborn enough that he won't be backing out of this heist till the very end. Updated~!**

**Today's quote is: "This way you'll be able to sense your enemy's ****pharaohs**** before it's too late. A lightsaber is not only for use in Jedi-to-****volcano**** combat—it also comes in handy if you find yourself in a ****saucy**** spot."—Sci-Fi Fantasy Club Mad Lib (Star Wars)**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day Two

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Tokyo Station  
November 18, 12:20 AM

"This _really_ isn't the right time, Hattori-kun. I'd rather you try and bring up this conversation in someplace more private. I _hate_ talking about _Them_ in a place like this," Kasuma hissed, waving her hands around the nearly empty train station.

"But there's no one else 'xept _us_ 'ere," Hattori retorted, "'N' I wanna know what's goin' on 'ere. Whatev'r ya 'n' Kudo have got planned, I want in."

"We never planned anything. All I've really _done_ so far is told Shi—_Conan-kun_ what I know about _Them_ as well as offer what little help I can give." Kasuma sighed, "Do I have to repeat myself again? I. Don't. Wanna. Talk. About. This. Now."

"No one's listenin'," Hattori insisted.

"I don't care; I'm not taking that chance. Hakuba's here and he doesn't know anything other than the fire incident. I don't want him to know any more than that. The fire's _already_ too much information." Kasuma's voice dropped, "And it wasn't even me who first spilled the beans…" she mumbled. Kasuma picked up her pace and fell into step with aforementioned detective, leaving Hattori alone with Conan.

Hattori glanced down at the shrunken teen, "…Fire?"

Conan shrugged nonchalantly, "Her parents died in a fire five or so years ago."

"Oi, _is_ there anythin' ya c'n tell me 'bout 'er wit'out revealin' too much?" Hattori asked, stuffing his hands into his pant pockets.

"I… can _try_… Let's see…" Conan paused, filtering through the information Kasuma gave him, "Her parents were scientists and their main project was to duplicate some unknown substance. A lot of their research ended up being used in Haibara's 'experiment.' Uh, after the 'incident' five years ago, she moved in with Hakuba-san's family for about two or three years. After that she stayed in America for a year then moved to Japan. She's fluent in tons of languages…"

"Ya know… that's not really da kind 'a info I was lookin' fer," Hattori deadpanned.

"Well, most of what she's told me is in regard to the Organization… There's not much I can give you. At least…" Conan paused, "Not in public."

"Hattori-kun, Conan-kun! Come on, we're going to my place!" Kasuma yelled, waving wildly, beaconing them over. Nakamori and the other three Task Force officers were already loading a patrol car and Hakuba was leaning against a blue Subaru Pleo. "You two can take the back seats!" Kasuma called out as she moved around the car to open the driver's door.

Hattori stared. "Don't tell me _yer _drivin'?"

"Of course it's me driving, this is my car," Kasuma deadpanned. "I'm the only one out of us four who can drive… _a car_," Kasuma stressed before Hattori interjected a comment about him and his motorcycle. "And I believe I'm the only one who knows how to get to my house from here."

"Ya better not be a reckless driv'r," Hattori muttered as he slid into the back seat behind Conan.

"I can be," Kasuma shrugged. "But there's no need to resort to that at this moment. If we're talking about my up-coming drive to Sendai, however, _that _may get called in to the station."

"Now you've got me worried," Hakuba mumbled, seating himself in the passenger's seat. "Don't get us killed, Kasuma."

"Come on, I'm not _that_ bad a driver," Kasuma pouted, inserting the keys in the ignition.

"Well, I wouldn't know," Hakuba retorted, "I've never been driven around by you before. Don't make me regret it."

Kasuma didn't reply and started the engine, driving out of Tokyo Station and towards her home.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
November 18, 12:48 AM

"Shoot, where did I put them?" Kasuma mumbled, riffling through a drawer of her desk.

"What'r ya lookin' fer?" Hattori asked, leaning against the doorframe of Kasuma's room. "By the way, t'is is a _huge_ house!"

"My parents had a good pay," Kasuma answered halfheartedly.

"Doin' what?" Hattori mumbled, "Assassinations for the Or—ITAI!" Hattori suddenly collapsed, clutching his right shin. The Osakan glared at the boy who committed the crime and Conan jerked his head towards the final detective sitting on Kasuma's bed. Hakuba quirked an eyebrow at the teen on the floor. "Damn it, you! That was my injur'd leg!"

"If anything, you got off easy," Hakuba replied. "Kasuma would have murdered you if she heard you bad-mouthing her family. Consider yourself lucky she's so engrossed in finding those pamphlets." Hakuba peered at Kasuma, who was still urgently searching through her drawer, "Kasuma, can I commandeer one of the bedrooms for a few hours…? It's late and it'd be best to get sleep whenever we can."

"Ah, screw it!" Kasuma exclaimed, shutting the drawer, "I'll look for those later." Kasuma spun around and addressed Hakuba, "You can take my parents' room. Conan-kun can take Takeo's room and Hattori-kun can take the guest bedroom." Hakuba nodded and left, turning the corner and disappearing behind the farthest door of the hallway.

"…Who's Takeo?" Conan asked.

Kasuma stopped short of the hallway. She looked behind her at Conan, "Didn't I mention him?" Conan shook his head. "Oh… I'm sure I did, but maybe I just didn't give any names. Takeo's my otouto. You may think it degrading but his bed is best suited for you, Conan-kun."

"He's not 'ere now?" Hattori asked. "Is he hangin' out at some friend's house?"

For the second time, Kasuma stopped short. "He's not doing any kind of 'hanging.' He's buried… buried and cremated. And all at the hands of one single bitch. Now follow me unless you wanna get lost and find yourself in the bar, for example." She shut her eyes, finishing off in a bitter tone.

"Bar…?" Hattori mouthed, raising an eyebrow. He shook his head, 'Don't t'ink I wanna kno'.'

Kasuma led the other two detectives down the second floor hall, naming the rooms as she passed. "The family room, guest bedroom one, bathroom, bar slash wine cellar—don't try sneaking in there, you're sure to get lost… or trapped—guest bedroom two, and Takeo's room. There's another bathroom at the other end of the hallway, to the left of my parents' room." Kasuma stood off to the side as Conan and Hattori both entered their assigned rooms, both of them marveling at the ornate furnishing and expansive rooms. Kasuma followed Hattori first, letting him soak in the mahogany, four post bed draped in vibrant red beddings. Hattori ran his eyes over the simple tan walls, scanning framed photos of sights in Japan. His eyes stopped briefly on a picture of Tsutenkaku Tower before he whistled and turned to Kasuma.

"How of'en do ya get guests?"

"Rarely. The main visitors we got were Masuyama-san and Sharon-san," Kasuma shrugged, closing her eyes.

"Who 'n' who?" Hattori asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Ah… right, you don't know their names. Well, if I were to refer to them by their codenames, they would be Pisco and Vermouth, respectively."

"Ah, speakin' o' codenames… now would be da perfect time ta talk 'bout da Org," Hattori remarked, seating himself on the bed.

"No it wouldn't. It's late and you'll need your rest. Besides, I was just about to go next door to see how Conan-kun's doing before getting some sleep myself. If we both wake up early enough, we may be able to chat then." Kasuma raised a hand briefly and departed the room, slipping into the room next door.

Upon entering the room, Kasuma found the shrunken detective lying on the dark blue, twin-sized platform bed, eyes gazing up at the ceiling bed above it. "Your brother liked games?"

Kasuma looked to her right at the wide TV screen where several game consuls were sitting underneath. She sighed, "Very much so. He was a very enthusiastic gamer. Whenever Organization operatives dropped in, Takeo would immediately go to his room, often times dragging me up, to play games. It kept him out of sight of the operatives. We were able to hide his existence for years before Anokata finally noticed him."

"'Anokata?' Who's that?"

"It's what operatives call the Boss," Kasuma explained, moving to sit on the edge of the bed, "Since his… or her identity is unknown, he or she is simply referred to as 'Anokata' or 'that person.'"

"Eh? So that's what it is?" Conan murmured, his entire being languid as he lounged on the mattress. "But wouldn't the higher-ups notice your mother pregnant?"

Kasuma waggled a finger, "Not if the scientists working under you never notify any of the higher-ups. The only 'big shot' members that visited us were Pisco and Vermouth and they kept their mouths shut."

"The woman who murdered your family was one of the only people to visit you? How ironic," Conan drawled, shutting an eye briefly.

"That only made it worse," Kasuma sighed. "We trusted her… despite her character. Image what I felt… being betrayed by her. It's akin to Agasa-hakase betraying _you_. If Agasa-hakase killed your parents, you would feel betrayed, deshou?"

"Sorry if this makes me sound insensitive, but I'm honestly curious. Why? Why Vermouth?"

"She was… different. She was kind to us… kinder than you'd imagine. She talked Anokata out of bugging our house although she couldn't do anything about the constant surveillance. She… she and Pisco, protected Takeo and I from Anokata as long as they could."

"The way you describe her, and don't take this the wrong way… makes her sound generous," Conan murmured.

"I guess… not the 'give money to thousands of charities' generous but more of an 'offer any help I can' generous. Outside of the Organization, Sharon-san was one of our trusted friends. Until, of course, she spun one hundred eighty degrees and set our house on fire."

"But she spared you and didn't destroy this house. That must say _something _about Vermouth," Conan remarked, waving a hand around the room.

"With Vermouth, you can never tell. For all I know, she could have an ulterior motive for sparing myself and this house. Hell, she could have _several_ ulterior motives and I'd never figure out one." Conan was unable to hide his incoming yawn and Kasuma stood, walking over to the door and placing her hand above the light switch. "It's late. Oyasumi nasai, Shinichi-kun." Kasuma's hand flicked the switch down and the child's room was plunged into darkness.

* * *

Beika Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
November 18, 9:41 AM

"Conan-kun, okite," a soft voice urged, nudging the sleeping boy gently.

"Mmm… _mmph_? Da-dare…?" Conan muttered, still half-asleep. "R-Ran… neechan…?"

"Un. Kasuma called me an hour ago and asked me to bring you a clean set of clothes," Ran explained.

Blinking slowly at first, then more rapidly, Conan slowly gained his conscience. Suddenly he bolted up, "What time is it? Ran… neechan," Conan exclaimed, looking around urgently.

"Calm down, Conan-kun. It's almost nine forty-five am," Ran soothed, handing Conan a neat pile of clothes.

"Where's Kasuma-neechan? Or Heiji-niichan and Hakuba-niichan?"

"Kasuma and Hattori-kun are in the library and I think I saw Hakuba-san in the kitchen." Ran stood up and smiled, before turning and walking towards the door, "I'll let you get ready."

When the door closed, Conan rapidly changed into the long pants and dark green t-shirt, slipping on the blue and white jacket with the letter 'K' on the left side. Conan exited the bedroom and went down the staircase two at a time. Looking around the foyer, Conan turned to his left and went down the hallway into what turned out to be the library. The shrunken teen found, as Ran said, Kasuma and Hattori seated in couches across from one another. Hakuba was nowhere to be seen. Kasuma noticed him first and beckoned him over, offering the boy a mug of… "Coffee," Kasuma said. "Ran-san thinks it's hot chocolate so don't give it away."

Conan eagerly accepted the drink and took a seat next to Hattori, sipping the caffeinated drink gratefully. "So?" Conan began, mug close to his face, letting the vapors warm him, "Did you two find time to chat? _Civilly?_"

"A little," Kasuma answered, "I managed to cover the basics before Hakuba woke up and came downstairs. I mean, we probably could have continued since Hakuba had spent most of the time in the kitchen but we'd never be able to tell when he'd decide to walk in here."

It was then that said detective entered the study, carrying two mugs of steaming liquid. Hakuba handed Kasuma one of the mugs, "Here. Hot chocolate."

"Arigato." Kasuma accepted the mug and set it on a coaster on the study's table. "I assume you got coffee?"

Hakuba nodded while Hattori asked, "No coffee fer ya?"

Kasuma shook her head, "I don't like coffee. It always gives me a weird aftertaste and I don't really like the smell… I can tolerate it—the smell, that is—but I won't ever drink any." Just then, the doorbell rang. Ran, who had just entered the study carrying a large tray of food, stopped and started to turn towards the door. "Ran-san, I'll get it. Just finish what you were doing." Kasuma rose and briskly exited the study. A minute or two passed before Kasuma returned with a new guest.

"…Nakamori-san."

"Hi, Hakuba-kun!" Aoko exclaimed, smiling brightly.

"A-Aoko-chan!" Ran stuttered, clearly taken aback.

"Hello Ran-chan, Conan-kun," Aoko nodded to the two of them. She took in the dark-skinned detective and tilted her head, "Who's this?"

The detective in question was currently having trouble keeping his mouth shut, glancing between Ran and Aoko with wide eyes and mouth agape. "H-h-how…? Ya… 'n' N-neechan… I-It's like a clone."

"I take it he's noticed the physical similarities, don't you Aoko-chan? Ran-san?" Kasuma remarked, smirking. "He goes by the name Hattori Heiji, by the way. And Hattori-kun, this is Nakamori Aoko, daughter of Nakamori-keibu."

"If you don't mind me asking, Nakamori-san, but why are you here? And how did you find Kasuma's house?" Hakuba asked, offering Aoko a chair.

Aoko followed Kasuma over to the couches and took a seat in the chair set out for her. "Kai… Kaito didn't come to school yesterday and I wanted to know why he ditched. I tried looking for him at his house but only his mother was there. She told me that there was a good chance he'd be here in Beika, at Kasuma-chan's house, and gave me the address… He's not here, is he?"

Kasuma shook her head, "He's not. But didn't he tell you?" Aoko shook her head, quirking a curious eyebrow. "He told me he was going over to America. KHA has a series of shows there right now and Kaito wanted to meet him."

"'KHA?' What's that?" Conan asked.

"He's a famous Asian-American magician who has traveled all around the world performing. I heard from Kaito that KHA and his father were good friends. He's probably looking for new tricks to try out… That or he's curious about his father and is asking KHA about him. Of course, since it's Kaito we're talking about, he's probably aiming to accomplish both." Kasuma tapped her chin, "Speaking of America, I really should call Amunet and ask her to find the Seattle targets."

"Really? Kaito didn't tell me anything about that," Aoko murmured, downcast.

Kasuma caught wind of Aoko's change of attitude and smiled, patting the girl's shoulder, "He probably thought you'd get annoyed or mad about him skipping classes."

Aoko shook her head, "Not if it was about Touichi-ojisan. BaKaito."

On the couch, on Aoko's left, Kasuma removed her slippers and tucked her legs underneath herself. Head resting on her palm, Kasuma looked at Hakuba, "I managed to find some pamphlets, recent ones I might add. We can use this time to find the heist locations… as well as figure out how we'll split up. It might be best to start by looking at the more well-known museums." Kasuma peered at Aoko, "Aoko-chan, would you like to stick around since school's a lost cause? Or are you gonna head back to Ekoda?"

Aoko was quiet as she pondered the situation. "I… guess I'll just hang around here, since I'm already in Beika. I suppose I could also stop by the Mega Mall."

Kasuma nodded, "Join in the conversation if you get any ideas."

"Well, first off, we can narrow the search down to exhibits that pertain to Greece and Korea," Hakuba suggested, spreading out a number of pamphlets across the surface of the table. "These are all the pamphlets for the museums in Tokyo and the surrounding areas… At least, the pamphlets Kasuma had. I'm sure there are more out there."

"And we should look for well-known museums," Conan muttered sifting through the pamphlets.

"Um…" Aoko spoke up, "What about the Tokyo National Museum? I know they have some new traveling exhibitions right now… one of them might have one of KID and Mage's targets."

"And we could also look at art museums, since we know they'll be after gemstones," Ran offered.

"That's a good idea," Kasuma nodded, leaning forward and sifting for pamphlets that fit their new found criteria.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
November 18, 2:29 PM

"Yeah, I'll be with you at Idemitsu as will Takemura-san and Nozaki-san," Kasuma was saying to the detective on the phone as she slipped into the agency behind Ran, Conan, and Hattori. "And so you won't have to deal with the 'hot-headed,'" Hattori shot her a glare,"Osakan detective, he'll be with Conan-kun, Uehara-san, and Nakamori-keibu over at the National Museum."

"Wha', the brat's back again?" Mouri's loud, drunk voice hollered, "Tha' waz fassst."

Kasuma frowned and murmured a quick goodbye to Hakuba while Ran stormed up to her father. "Mou, Otou-san! Stop drinking! That's too many cans!" Ran roughly grabbed the seven empty cans and stormed over to the kitchen to dispose of them.

"Nooo izzz not! Ran-chan, gimme 'nother beer!" Mouri called after her, waving a hand sloppily in the air.

"As long as he doesn't go driving like that then I'm not complaining," Kasuma muttered, leaning against the back of the couch.

"Ne," Ran began as she exited the kitchen, "Are you three going to the heist locations early?"

"I don't know about Hattori-kun and Conan-kun, but _I _wasn't planning on going early. I'll be at home getting some final preparations ready for the rest of the WLH," Kasuma answered.

"We don' really hafta go," Hattori shrugged. "Keibu-han 'n' his men'll be t'ere gettin' ev'rythin' ready."

"Although we can't really speak for Hakuba," Kasuma remarked, glancing out the window. "Knowing him, he might wanna stake out the location ea…rly…" Kasuma trailed off, eyes widening.

"K-kasuma…?" Ran began.

"Mouri-san, _abunai!"_ Kasuma exclaimed, grabbing the nearest item—a flashlight—and chucking it at Mouri's head. Mouri turned towards the teen then yelped as he noticed the projectile and slipped, falling just below the window of the agency. "Everyone _duck!"_ Kasuma yelled urgently.

The shot itself was quiet but the room occupants could tell what happened by the shattering of glass from the agency's window. Kasuma and Hattori both hissed simultaneously, the two of them straining their respective wounds. Immediately, Conan stood and ran towards the door, throwing it open and rushing down the stairs.

"What the hell? Why are brats always chucking crap at me?" Mouri exclaimed, moving into a sitting position and carefully peeking out the window. "Ran, stay down… Just in case."

Cursing, Kasuma ran out the door, Hattori at her heels. 'Shinichi-kun has a head start. Hopefully he can catch up to the culprit.' The two detectives ran down the alley across the agency.

"Where's Kudo?" Hattori asked.

Kasuma looked behind her at Hattori, "No idea. But I _do_ know that the culprit was in this alleyway when he… or she took the shot."

"Who would target Occhan?"

"No one, generally, except the Detective Serial Killer," Kasuma answered, pausing to look around before running down another alley.

"Ya mean da guy who's been runnin' 'round da world killin' famous detectives ev'ryw'ere?" Hattori asked for clarification. Kasuma didn't voice an answer, only nodding the affirmative. "Ya 'ere attacked a while ago. Yer not _t'at_ famous 'r' ya?"

Kasuma shook her head, "No I'm not. But I _am_ a detective living within walking distance of three _famous_ detectives. And since Killer-san was probably going after Mouri-san, Hakuba, and Shinichi-kun, he decided to get rid of me as well. Even though I've only been in Japan for a few months and, overall, have kept a low profile, I've spent a lot of time with Hakuba and the Mouri family. If Killer-san was watching either one of them, they'd know that I'm a detective as well. Killer-san's MO doesn't limit him or herself to just famous detectives."

"Kudo's also a targ't?"

"Not in his current form, I don't think. Conan-kun is the magician behind the scenes manipulating Nemure no Kogoro, not the show-off he apparently used to be."

"Oi, oi," Hattori mumbled, coming to a stop as he and Kasuma spotted Conan in the middle of the alley panting.

"I take it you didn't catch the culprit," Kasuma remarked, walking up to Conan.

"No, but I _did_ manage to find the bullet shell," Conan said, pulling out a handkerchief-encased bullet shell.

Kasuma searched her pocket and pulled out a pair of white gloves, slipping them on and picking up the shell. She examined it. "A 7.62x39mm cartridge… It has a maximum range of 350 meters and it's probably from a sniper rifle, though I can't tell just by looking at the shell." It was then that Kasuma noticed the shocked looks on Conan and Hattori's faces. She smiled sheepishly, "Sorry. Organization information… stuff either my parents, Vermouth, or Pisco would tell me."

"Yer parents died five 'r six years ago…" Hattori began. "Ya would o' been elev'n. Dey told 'n _elev'n_ year old 'bout guns 'n' bullets?"

"No, I was even _younger_. About eight or nine. They felt it would be good for me to know… so I could better prepare myself should anything arise. When they had time, either my father or Vermouth would teach me how to shoot… They never let me actually _fire_ but they taught me the basics. My father has a Colt M1911A1 pistol well-hidden in our house here and occasionally, I'll have a Walther PPK hidden on my person."

'Oi, oi,' Conan thought, 'You don't actually _use_ them, do you?'

As if Kasuma read Conan's thoughts, she looked down at him and gave a small smile, "I only bring it around if I sense Organization members and I never use it unless it's absolutely necessary. The only time I fire the Colt or PPK would be at a firing range."

"Vermouth dis, Vermouth dat… That woman 'as been pretty active in yer life," Hattori muttered.

Kasuma didn't answer. Instead, she turned and began retracing her steps, "We'd better turn this shell into the police as evidence."

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Car  
November 18, 7:25 PM

Kasuma pulled up beside Agasa's house where Conan and Hattori were waiting. Rolling down the window on Hakuba's side she told the two detectives, "Get in. The door's open."

"What… the British prick gets shotgun?" Hattori muttered, sliding into the back seat after Conan.

Kasuma looked at Hattori through the rear-view mirror. "Well, I picked him up first so yes… he gets shotgun." Kasuma saluted Agasa, who was standing on the doorstep of his home, Haibara next to him, then drove off. "The National Museum is en route to Idemitsu so I'll drop you two off there first," Kasuma informed Conan and Hattori.

"Ne Hakuba-niichan, I only noticed at Kyoto but, is Mage ambidextrous?" Conan asked, leaning forward in his seat.

Both Hakuba and Kasuma started, Kasuma's surprise at the question not interfering with her driving. She glanced back briefly before peeling her gaze back to the road. "Would you do the honors, Hakuba?" Kasuma asked, "Since I'm sure you'll have an easier time demonstrating."

Hakuba swiveled slightly in his seat, facing Conan more fully. "Mage is definitely right-handed. We know that for sure."

"But Mage used the left hand to shoot those projectiles," Conan pointed out.

"Right," Hakuba nodded. "It would be best to explain that as semi-ambidextrousness. Mage's dominate hand is the right but Mage almost always uses the left hand to use artillery, specifically, the gun that Mage sticks gas capsules and other small projectiles in." Hakuba mimicked Mage, using his left hand to shoot an imaginary target. "There _are_ times when Mage uses the right hand but that's only when Mage's left hand is occupied."

"It's possible that Mage's left hand is steadier than the right when holding a gun," Kasuma suggested. "Of course, we can't say that for sure but it's an idea… We're here."

Conan and Hattori looked out the window, the Tokyo National Museum looming over them. "How didja get 'ere so fast?"

"She's been gradually driving faster and faster," Hakuba sighed. "It felt like you were pushing seventy at some point. That would be ten over the maximum speed limit in Japan."

"Doesn't matter, doesn't matter," Kasuma shrugged. "At least I got you two here." Conan and Hattori exited the car. "We'll see you boys after the heist… Good luck."

"You too, Kasuma-neechan, Hakuba-niichan!" Conan returned brightly.

* * *

Idemitsu Museum of Arts  
November 18, 7:45 PM

"Don't speed, you idiot!" Hakuba exclaimed as Kasuma finally slowed and parked near the Idemitsu Museum of Arts. "You could have gotten us arrested!"

"Relax Hakuba," Kasuma sighed, getting out of the car. "C'mon… if I didn't speed, we would have been cutting it real close. I shaved off ten minutes of our trip by speeding."

"Yeah but that also means you traveled six kilometers in ten minutes." Hakuba climbed out of the car, shutting the door. "You're a reckless driver when speeding."

"You say reckless, I say fearless." Kasuma moved around the car and walked side-by-side with her childhood friend as they entered the art museum. "It'll be worse when I'm driving to Sendai, so be glad you're taking a train up there."

"…How do you think KID and Mage will separate?" Hakuba asked, changing the subject. Takemura and Nozaki were just inside the main doors of the museum. Takemura nervously drew a hand through his short brown hair, tentatively suggesting that he check them for false faces. Hakuba relented, letting Takemura confirm that it indeed was the real Hakuba Saguru. Hakuba glanced behind him where Kasuma was now lurking. He looked over at Takemura, "You won't be able to get anywhere _near_ her cheek… unless you want a beating."

Kasuma smirked, silently agreeing with Hakuba's claim. "However," she suggested. "I _can_ tell you something random about Hakuba, here. And since we now _know_ that it's the real Hakuba, he can _confirm_ that random 'something.'"

"Oh dear God," Hakuba muttered, hiding his face in his hand.

"…When we were six years old, we were in Ekoda Park and during lunch, you were attacked by a flock of birds… doves, to be specific," Kasuma stated, grinning.

"Most embarrassing moment of my childhood," Hakuba groaned. "Did you _have_ to bring it up again?"

Kasuma shrugged, "It was the first thing that came to mind."

* * *

Tokyo National Museum

"Get ready men!" Nakamori exclaimed, as his command ensued frenzied activity from the officers in the museum.

"Chrysos really _does_ look like something KID or Mage would steal," Conan remarked, Hattori being the only one to hear him.

"Aa," Hattori agreed, examining the golden colored diamond. "It's _huge!_"

"I wonder which one of them will attack Chrysos…" Conan murmured, cupping his chin with a hand.

* * *

Idemitsu Museum of Arts

"Well, Nakamori-keibu has been chasing KID for at least twenty years," Kasuma was saying. "And you have been after Mage for five. That being said, KID is more acquainted with Nakamori-keibu and Mage with you. That may be how they'll separate. Then again, that would mean they've been watching and figured out how we're going to split up… which is just plain _creepy_."

"Think of who you're talking about, Kasuma," Hakuba deadpanned. "KID and Mage bypass any kind of classification like that."

"Option E: All of the above," Kasuma muttered. "Yeah, yeah, I know. They're everything from creepy to sneaky to freaky." Hakuba sighed and let his head fall into his hand. "By the way… How much time do we have? And don't you _dare_ give me any seconds."

"Wasn't planning on," Hakuba muttered. "And we've got a little over five minutes left."

* * *

Tokyo National Museum

"Only five minutes left. Everyone on your toes!" Nakamori announced.

"Almost time," Conan murmured, glancing up at Hattori briefly. "They'll strike soon."

"'N' like Keibu-han said… Bett'r be on yer toes," Hattori nodded.

* * *

"Almost ready here. How 'bout you?"

"Waiting and ready to go."

"Great. And Jii-chan?"

"Hidden and on standby."

"Good. Then we'd better get to our starting positions."

"How far away are you?"

"Not far at all. I've been hanging around the area since five."

"Well then, I'll see you when our escape paths cross."

"See you then, Aibou."

"**Good luck**… Kaitou."

* * *

Simultaneously, in two different places, pink and blue smoke was released, filling the respective rooms. Within the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Mage appeared above the cloud of smoke, a smirk hidden behind her mask. Inside the Tokyo National Museum, KID perched himself atop a high window, the smoke revealing hundreds of balloons that were littering the museum floor.

Releasing another smoke bomb, Mage's form was concealed briefly as the smoke engulfed the room once again. When it cleared, the floor was covered with small, plastic, multi-colored balls. Mage grinned behind the mask, peering down at the Idemitsu team, "Wouldn't it be great to regress to that carefree time known as childhood? I always loved the ball pit… although it was always so hard to maneuver through that mass. I wish you luck!"

"How in the hell did you _get_ all of these?" Kasuma exclaimed, swatting away the balls nearest to her.

Mage set a finger against the mouth of her mask, "A magician never reveals his secret." Mage released another smoke bomb and disappeared, only to reappear atop the target's case. The target, a ruby named Salang, was extracted by Mage. She tossed it up once then gave a low bow, jumping over to a window and effortlessly prying it open (even though it should have been sealed tight). "Ta-ta~!" Mage ducked through the window and dropped, releasing her hang glider and flying away.

Hakuba cursed and ran through the hundreds of balls to the doors of the room, Kasuma at his heels. From behind them, the two detectives could hear Takemura yelling, "Give chase! Hurry!"

Meanwhile, at the Tokyo National Museum, KID raised an arm dramatically before twirling his wrist and snapping, the action causing all the balloons to somehow pop simultaneously. Conan, Hattori, and the rest of the police force, covered their ears and flinched at the loud noises around them. When the noise subsided, KID was still on his window perch but was now holding the golden diamond known as Chrysos."KID! Kisama!" Nakamori exclaimed, shaking a fist in the air.

"Tsk, tsk," KID admonished, "I'd watch that language if I were you… We have, in fact, been graced by the presence of a child." KID gestured towards Conan. The child in question rolled his eyes, glaring up at KID. "Well," KID sighed, "I must head off. Places to be, things to steal. I'll see you up in Sendai, right Keibu? See ya then!" KID jumped out the window in that moment and activated his hang glider, disappearing behind the nearby buildings.

**Final Notes: I've been doin' pretty good length-wise… I hope that continues. I don't really have much else to say. Simply R&R! (pweeze?)**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Technically, I shouldn't be giving you those."**_


	21. Day Three (17)

**A/N: Part eleven of the Pandora Arc! This chapter will be a little shorter than the others but not by much.  
****Warnings: Glitter, pitch, silly string, and many other little things…  
****Acknowledgments: Cai-chan! And DCMonkey4EVR!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): It's very brown here in Eastern Oregon…Even the buildings are brown… And there are lots of rock formations…**

**Today's quote is: "You know what's funnier than shooting tapioca balls? Watching people do so."—Mari-chan**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day Three

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Tokyo Station  
November 19, 6:50 AM

"Where's Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked as Hakuba entered the station.

"She's going on ahead of us," Hakuba answered. "She told me to relay this message to Nakamori-keibu: 'If an officer radios in about a blue Subaru Pleo speeding towards Sendai, then don't worry because that's me on the way.'"

"Your friend's not taking the train?" Nakamori asked as he passed the detective.

"No," Hakuba shook his head. "I take it you heard Kasuma's message, so I don't need to repeat myself. Kasuma refunded her Tokyo to Sendai ticket in order to drive up there so we'd have another car to use for the rest of the Japan heists. However, since she's not going to ship her car oversees just for one heist in America, she's asking her friend, whose father has a condo in Seattle, if she can use their car up there."

"Is Kasuma-neechan leaving the same time the train leaves?" Conan asked brightly.

"No, she left an hour and five point thirty-seven seconds ago," Hakuba answered after looking at his golden pocket watch.

Hattori sweat-dropped, "…Right… Fergot 'bout dis guy's t'ing w'th seconds."

"What are we gonna do about the heist location?" Conan asked as the train to Sendai pulled up. "And we're still not sure about what 'fluttering flower' means." The detectives and Task Force officers boarded the train.

"Kasuma and I were working on that for a large portion of the night… which probably wasn't a good idea," Hakuba shrugged. "The location is the Sendai City Museum. We believe—but aren't sure—that the target is Papilio, a large 2,475 carat Rubellite Tourmaline that has been cut into the shape of a flower."

"Naruhodo," Conan mumbled. "'Papilio' is Latin for 'butterfly' and since it's been cut into the shape of a flower, then it really _is_ a 'fluttering flower.'"

"That was our reasoning when we came across it," Hakuba nodded. "Although it was a feat in itself just to _find_ this gemstone. One would think that such a large jewel with its high price of eight million yen would be easy to find but the truth is… there's almost nothing about this jewel."

"E-e-eight million 'en? 'Oly _shit!_" Hattori exclaimed.

Hakuba pointedly ignored the Osakan detective and continued, "The size of the jewel coincides with KID and Mage's usual criteria and the lack of information simply exemplifies that."At that point, the train bound for Sendai took off down the tracks.

* * *

Sendai, Japan  
Sendai Station  
November 19, 10:08 AM

"Kasuma-neechan, you're here already?" Conan asked as he bounced off the train and ran over to Kasuma.

"Of course, I left earlier than you all," Kasuma shrugged, waving to the others getting off the train.

"Well, that _and_ you were speeding. Nakamori-keibu heard from the traffic police that a blue Subaru Pleo with license plate Hachioji 579 Ta 4110 was speeding towards Sendai," Hakuba spoke up. "It turns out you _didn't_ go back on your word. It took a while to convince the police that you were with us."

Kasuma grinned, "Fearless driver, right here."

"More like _reckless_," Hakuba muttered.

"Ya ain't gonna do t'at w'en yer drivin' _us_ around 'r' ya?" Hattori asked.

"Probably not, but no guarantees," Kasuma answered. "On another note, we shouldn't dawdle here. I'm sure Nakamori-keibu needs to get to the Sendai police and let them know of the heist." Hakuba moved over to Nakamori and began talking with him, leaving the other detectives to themselves.

"You couldn't find a way to fit 'ka' into the license plate, could you?" Conan asked as he looked up at Kasuma.

Kasuma chuckled, "So you caught that, huh?"

"W'at 'r' ya talkin' 'bout?" Hattori asked.

"My license plate," Kasuma replied. "The lower line gives both my family names…or at least _most_ of it."

"The hiragana 'ta' is the beginning of the name you used to go by and the first digit, '4,' is the last part of that name. Since private vehicles can't have the hiragana 'ka,' you couldn't finish 'Takashi,' so you had to leave out 'ka.' With the way you write your current name, Kazuki can be reread as 'Ichiju,' which is where the '110' comes from."

"Coincidently, '110' is the emergency number used to call the police," Kasuma smirked, "Although '119' might have suited me better, since I'm always getting hurt in one way or another. As Conan-kun knows very well, living under the Organization is dangerous."

"Speakin' o' da Org," Hattori spoke up then. "I'm still confus'd 'bout yer 'hole t'ing wit' dem. Hakuba got up soon'r den expect'd 'n' ya didn't get much out."

"Kasuma," Hakuba walked back over to the other detectives. "A patrol car will be coming soon to take us to Headquarters. Are you going to go ahead of us?"

"When you say 'us,' I assume you're sticking with Nakamori-keibu, right?" Hakuba nodded. "It's just the Headquarters? I can find my way. I have a GPS in my car. We'll manage and if we get lost, I can just text you for directions." Hakuba nodded once again and walked back over to Nakamori. Kasuma turned to Hattori and Conan, fishing through her pockets for her keys. "Well, that clears up _that_ worry. Now we can talk freely during the car ride."

"Or 'ight now," Hattori muttered.

"Guess so," Kasuma replied, leading Conan and Hattori to where she parked her car. "Fire away. I'll answer… within reason, of course."

Hattori was quiet for a while as he pondered what to ask her. Finally, he began with, "How deep is yer conn'ction wit' the Org?"

"You mean as in 'rank,' so to speak?" Kasuma asked, unlocking the doors to her car and slipping into the driver's seat. As she drove away from the train station, Kasuma felt around the glove compartment for the GPS. "Well, I personally don't have a 'rank' in the Organization but my parents were two of _Their_ most important scientists. Years before I was born, they were given some strange substance and were asked to perform tests on the substance. What kind of tests? I don't know; my parents never really gave me information about the project itself. I remember, when I was maybe about six or so, seeing papers covered in notes and test results as well as several kinds of formulas. When I was looking through Ai-chan's information regarding that poison that shrunk Shinichi-kun and herself, I recognized some of the formulas so whatever my parents worked on before their death has some sort of following with Ai-chan's poison."

"That strange substance… is it the same thing that Vermouth mentioned to Haibara?" Conan asked, leaning forward in his seat.

"What thing?" Kasuma glanced at Conan through the rear-view mirror.

"Something about Waykamatayan finding something of interest to the Boss," Conan elaborated. "It's part of the story _They_ tell to new recruits of the Organization."

"Oh, the rat in the Organization mentioned something about that in one of their older e-mails," Kasuma mused, tapping the steering wheel with a finger. "I'm not sure."

"'Way-kama-ta-yan?' W'at is dat?" Hattori asked. "It don't soun' Japanese."

"It's not." Kasuma replied. "But as to what language it _is_, I'm not sure. It hasn't rung any bells… Any other questions?"

"'heir names?"

Kasuma quirked an eyebrow at the question but answered with, "Kouichi and—"

"No, no, I mean 'heir _code_names," Hattori corrected, waving a hand back and forth.

"Oh… Technically, I shouldn't be giving you those."

"Sworn to secrecy?" Conan asked.

Kasuma shrugged, "To an extent."

"So… how do ya k'ow dat British prick?" Hattori asked, changing the subject.

Kasuma raised an eyebrow, "I… don't see how that connects to the Organization."

"If I rememb'r correctly, dat guy's old man is hi' up in da police force. I'm sure yer family woulda been on da lookout fer people like dat, yet ya some'ow manag'd ta becom' friends wit' 'im." Hattori elaborated, focusing his gaze on the teen.

"Completely by chance," Kasuma responded. "My parents took me to Beika Park one day and Hakuba and his mother just happened to be there as well… Ah, here we are." Kasuma drove up to the curb outside the Police Headquarters and killed the engine.

* * *

Sendai, Japan  
Sendai City Museum  
November 19, 5:45 PM

The museum was surrounded by police cars, their lights still flashing bright red. Within the expansive museum, officers sent from the Miyagi Prefectural Police were bustling about the museum, clearing out the artifacts of the room housing Papilio. "I wonder…" Kasuma murmured as she examined the jewel.

"Wonder what?" Conan asked.

"If this was originally found in Italy… maybe during Roman times. The jewel is cut to look like aquilegia vulgaris, which is native to western, central, and southern Europe and the name it was given could be explained if that was the case… Although, we probably won't ever find out due to Papilio's lack of information," Kasuma shrugged, looking around the exhibition room. Inside, the room was filled with officers, a large group of them crowded around Nakamori, seeking instruction, another mass of them surrounding the perimeter of the room.

"Looks like da artifac' migrati'n is almos' done," Hattori murmured as he watched the officers carry priceless artifacts, jewelry, and other items out of the room, leaving only Papilio behind.

Kasuma shut her eyes briefly, digging through her pockets. "I'm gonna sweep the museum…" Kasuma grinned and pulled out some fishing line, "And maybe even set some traps for our visiting phantom thieves."

Hakuba face-palmed as he approached the scheming teen, "You're not going to induce bodily harm, are you?"

"No!" Kasuma denied immediately. "I was simply thinking of smoke or something of the like to possibly confuse and maybe disorient them. I would _never _cause them bodily harm. That would be against their 'no one gets hurt' motto… which includes the thieves themselves… well, _most_ of the time."

"As in those skanky knob heads who have the gall to attack KID or Mage with absolutely _no_ concern about the well-being of innocents around them," Hakuba muttered. "And the worst of it is we can't do _anything_ to prevent their attacks! We never know when they'll strike."

"The best we can do is hope they come prepared and be ready to chase down the culprits if we can," Kasuma shrugged. "We already know Mage uses Kevlar and maybe Mage has gotten KID to wear one too." Kasuma made to exit the room, "Anyway… I'll walk around the museum and see what I can do about traps."

* * *

"Bocchama, where is M—Aibou?" Jii asked the figure in black next to him, pulling his baseball cap down to further obscure his features.

"She should be somewhere in the vents, setting up a trick," Kaito answered, pulling out some more supplies for the trick he had in mind. "Aibou said she'd drop down from the closest possible vent opening when she's finished."

"Which would be about now," Mage answered, dropping down from the ceiling and looking around the hallway for any officers. Swiveling, Mage let out a whistle, the sharp tone summoning a hoard of doves.

"Good, you brought your doves," Kaito grinned. "Mine are already waiting on the beams of the next-door room."

"Bocchama, how will you tell the difference between your doves and Ma—I mean Aibou's doves?" Jii asked the teen.

Mage set a finger against her lips, "When in a more public situation like this, call me Maeka. And as to the difference between my doves and Kaitou's doves, that would be the small, nearly weightless, purple ribbon around my doves' ankles. There's no need to worry about that." Mage opened the door next to her and whistled again—this time quieter—and pointed up towards the ceiling. The doves flew up and found themselves perches upon the beams of the ceiling. "It's dark in that room, so as long as they're all quiet, anyone searching the room won't find anything." Mage pulled more items out of her many hidden pockets and set off to work. "Oh, I just remembered… Kaito," Kaito took note of the missing long vowel, "You've got a meeting with my magician relative when we reach Seattle. He managed to pull himself away from his shows and will be catching a flight to Seattle soon."

"Sweet. At least now I won't have to lie about meeting a magician," Kaito grinned. "Let's just hope he can make it… since my alibi for the entire week is resting in his hands. Now, are you gonna take care of the target's exhibit room?"

Mage nodded, "I need to sneak my way in there somehow and if, by chance, I can't, I'll set it up through the vents."

"Ne… I just thought of this but…" Kaito stopped briefly in his work. "Is 'Maeka' another alias?"

"Yup," Mage replied. "However, I have to be careful about how I use her. Holmes has seen Maeka several times at this point, many of them right outside heist locations, so I have to use her sparingly. Technically, she's a Eurasian with platinum blonde hair so it would be unusual to have her wandering Japan."

"And yet, you're wearing a dark purple wig," Kaito mumbled. "Whatever. Hey, I'm gonna get closer to the exhibit room and try to set up more traps. This heist will be so much fun!"

Mage smirked, "Yeah… for _us_."

"That's all that matters," Kaito grinned. "Although I'm disappointed that I won't be able to use any of my hair dye… I would _love_ to see Hakuba in bright pink… or maybe purple?"

"Save that for another heist, Kaitou," Mage sighed. "As much as I'd _love_ to see Holmes in brightly colored hair, that's a little too humiliating during a WLH."

"It wouldn't be just Hakuba!" Kaito whined. "I'd get the others too! Then he won't be singled out!"

"Like I said: Leave that for another heist." Mage smiled, "They may be more distracted in removing the dye than in getting to the next location."

"Oh yeah," Kaito tapped his chin. "I didn't think of that. Well, we don't want _that_ to happen~!"

"Well," Mage murmured. "I should make my way towards Papilio's prison cell." Mage leapt up into the air and latched a hand onto the opening in the ventilation system, pulling herself in fully and replacing the grated cover. When the faint sounds of Mage's departure faded, Kaito collected some of his stuff and headed down the hallway, Jii finalizing their trap and moving towards a different section of the museum.

* * *

"Kasuma, I finally found you!"

"Ah, Hakuba," Kasuma tightened the nearly invisible trip line and stood. "Careful around here, Hakuba, you don't want to get a face full of smoke."

"Where else did you lay your traps?" Hakuba asked.

"Only on the stairs," Kasuma answered. "There's another one near the roof entrance and two others in almost the same positions on the other set of stairs. I figured this would be the best place to try and confuse them."

"We should head back… the designated time is approaching," Hakuba suggested. Kasuma shrugged and headed down the stairs slightly behind her childhood friend, withdrawing into herself. Noticing, Hakuba sent her a worried glance before mumbling, "December is approaching."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Kasuma murmured with a small smile.

"You know what I mean," Hakuba rolled his eyes. "And you really should stop it. You really shouldn't harm yourself like tha—"

"Kasuma-neechan, Hakuba-niichan, c'mon!" Conan exclaimed as he noticed them approaching. Kasuma waved at the boy and followed Conan into the exhibition room, Hakuba next to her. Inside, Nakamori was standing next to Papilio, giving orders by way of radio. Conan immediately ran towards Hattori, who was leaning against the wall, his favorite SAX hat shading his eyes.

"There's twenty-eight point thirty-five seconds until KID and Mage said they'd arrive," Hakuba murmured, glancing at his pocket watch.

"Then we'd better be on our toes," Kasuma responded. "Who knows what they'll pull in order to get that jewel." Suddenly, all the lights in the room shut off, plunging the room into darkness. "Including blackouts, apparently," Kasuma muttered.

"Check the breakers!" Nakamori announced. "And get the lights back on!"

"Why, we could do that for you," KID's voice floated in. Someone, presumably KID, snapped and the lights were restored, revealing the thief sitting leisurely atop the beams of the room, Mage perched next to him, leaning against a vertical beam. KID's monocle reflected the lights of the room, casting a glare on the silver eye piece. Instead of her usual full mask, Mage was sporting a half-mask version of the mask she usually wore.

"Glad to see you made it Keibu, Tanteis," Mage said, pushing herself away from the beam. "We've got some individuals we'd like you all to meet." Simultaneously, KID and Mage brought two gloved fingers to their mouths and whistled loudly. At first nothing happened; the room's occupants looked around for any change in the room. Then, all of a sudden, a plethora of doves, all with different feather patterns, flew in from everywhere.

"W'at _is_ all t'is?" Hattori exclaimed, ducking as three doves flew in over his head.

"What are you planning?" Hakuba spoke next, stepping towards Kasuma to avoid colliding with a grey and white dove.

"Just as Aibou said," KID grinned. "We'd like to introduce you to our doves." Two doves landed on each of KID's shoulders, another dove doing the same with Mage. "However, I fear it'll take far too long to introduce you to all sixty doves flying around in this room."

"S-sixty?" Conan exclaimed, flinching slightly as a dove landed on his small shoulder.

"Yes," KID replied. "That one there with you, Tantei-kun, is Ren'ai. She's the one you took care of during the Memories Egg case. It seems she's taken a liking to you. She must have remembered you."

"Let's see…" Mage began as she scanned the room. Her eyes landed on Hakuba and the dove that had landed on the British detective's head. "That sweet young girl on Holmes is Ajisai. She's new… just a baby, but she learns fast." Ajisai flapped her wings briefly before taking off, flying up towards the ceiling. Mage looked at Hattori, "The dove on _your_ shoulder, Tantei-han, is Majinai. He can be a little rowdy, so do try to avoid exciting him."

All at once, the sixty doves within the confines of the room scattered, wildly flying about, low to the ground. Grinning, KID snapped, the action cueing bucket loads of white feathers to flutter down, a blizzard of slowly descending feathers. Suddenly, the doves climbed up to the ceiling just as Mage snapped. At that moment, the air vents in the room switched on, exploding with cold air. Accompanying the cold breeze was a torrent of silver, red, and blue glitter. KID and Mage, seated comfortably on the beams high above the vents, were safe from the mass of falling glitter. Those below the vents, having trouble seeing through the thick wall of glitter, shielded their faces. "Iji," KID exclaimed from his position. "Look at you! You've got glitter all over you!" Mage laughed, flipping off the beam, cutting through the glitter, and landing effortlessly on the jewel display stand. Still blinded by the glitter, officers and detectives alike couldn't locate Mage's position as she swiftly opened the case housing Papilio and extracted the jewel.

"The glitter should be out of your faces in thirty seconds," Mage began. "Do tell us if anything goes wrong. With that, see ya!" Mage jumped off the stand and ran through the chaos until she reached the door, KID joining her soon after. The two thieves threw open the doors and turned down one of the hallways.

"Kusou," Conan cursed, opening one eye and attempting to see through all the glitter. 'Where did they go?' At that moment, the vents shut off and the last of the glitter settled on the museum floor.

Cooing from the many doves pulled the attention of many officers, Nakamori included, and they glanced upward at the birds. "Forget the doves!" Hakuba exclaimed, making a break for the door. "They won't be coming down any time soon. We need to find those thieves!" Hakuba ran through the doors, Kasuma, Conan, and Hattori following closely behind.

"Let's split up," Kasuma suggested. "There are two staircases that lead to the roof. Maybe we can corner them. Just watch out for the two tripwires." Kasuma turned to her left, calling over her shoulder, "Hakuba, come on!" Hakuba nodded, heading towards the staircase to their left, Conan and Hattori running in the opposite direction.

* * *

"Looks like the first few officers fell into your trap Kaitou," Mage grinned as she pressed the earpiece further into her ear.

"Aa, I heard it too," KID answered, tapping his own earpiece.

"What _was_ it, anyway?" Mage asked, raising Papilio up into the moonlight.

"A net made out of silly string," KID answered, grinning. "Specially _modified_ silly string."

"Gross," Mage replied tersely. She then sighed, lowering the gem, "Not the one, sadly."

"That's a shame," KID agreed. "Hmm… I wonder when the T—oops, there goes another one!"

"That would be mine," Mage murmured. "And a messy one too: pitch, confetti, and feathers."

A rooftop door swung open, revealing Kasuma and Hakuba as they came to a stop just past the open door. Not even a second later, another door was thrown open and Conan and Hattori skidded to a stop as their eyes met the scene before them. "Good. Everyone's here," KID said with a small laugh.

"That is… everyone who is _able_ to get here," Mage rephrased, laughing herself. "It seems all the officers are preoccupied with our traps."

"Yes, that seems to be the case," KID agreed. "Our third and final trap has just been sprung… I'm surprised you four managed to avoid them… Or maybe I shouldn't be, seeing as you four are much more familiar with the two of us."

"'Trap,' you say?" Conan quoted, raising a small eyebrow.

"Why yes!" KID exclaimed. "When we finish chatting, _do_ look around and find those poor officers. I'm afraid some of them have been trapped in a silly string net, others stuck in a goop made up of pitch, confetti, and feathers, and others… what _was_ our third trap?" KID sent Mage a brief glance.

"Hmm…" Mage murmured, thinking back. "I'm… afraid I don't recall. Well," Mage shrugged. "I suppose you all will find out soon enough. Ja ne~!"

"Oh no ya don't!" Hattori exclaimed, running towards the two thieves. Both bearing identical grins, KID and Mage threw down some smoke bombs, engulfing the roof in pink, blue, and purple smoke. When the smoke cleared, four detectives, still coughing slightly from the smoke, caught sight of two hang gliders taking off towards the darkened horizon.

* * *

Elsewhere in Sendai  
November 19, 7:21 PM

Two shadows passed overhead. The figure strolling down the nearly empty street paused and looked skyward. A cold, icy smirk graced the pedestrian's face. 'And there goes Kaitou number two with his new-found partner. Funny, I don't recall a notice ever being sent about Sendai.' Eyes shifting back downward, the figure continued on their way. 'No matter. I _have_ been, in fact, in America until recently… visiting _them_. It's no wonder I never heard of a heist in Sendai.' A delicate hand pulled off a pair of black sunglasses, replacing them on the top of the figure's head. Wrapping the long black coat around her black, knee-length dress, the figure scanned her surroundings as she clenched the strap of her black duffel bag. Ahead of her, a group of teenagers ran out of a building to her left. She stopped, the soft clicks of her black high heel shoes dying down. The young group was talking amongst themselves, far too quietly for her to hear, the tallest running a frustrated hand through his light hair. The tannest male of the group was cussing—at least, it certainly _seemed_ like he was cussing. And the female—the woman in black smiled, fondness and nostalgia breaking through her cold, indifferent mask. 'She's grown… into a beautiful young woman. In fact… she looks just like her mother.' The young woman in question jerked her head up and looked around. The woman pushed herself deeper into the shadows. The woman watched as the three teens entered a blue car, the last to enter being a small child. When the car pulled away from the curb and drove off, the woman stepped out of the shadows. "My, my, I finally recovered my lost experiment, it seems. She's returned to Japan… And it seems she's become acquaintances with my Silver Bullet-kun." Her cold smirk back in place, the woman continued on her way.

**Final Notes: If you're thoroughly confused about the 'December is approaching' comment then that's just perfect. You will find out when December rolls around in our story. This chapter ended with a little something extra… and mysterious, I dare say? I wonder what this 'lost experiment' means?**

**Anyway…**_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: **_"_**We went to the same high-school when I was in Portland, Oregon."**_


	22. Day Four (18)

**A/N: Part twelve of the Pandora Arc!  
****Warnings: Arabic (if the translation is wrong, please tell me), Black Organization, and references to a certain school that I'm **_**very**_** familiar with…  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan for BETA-ing, Chichi-chan for her awesome trick idea, and DCMonkey4EVR for helping me in choosing a computer for Kasuma's car.  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): I wonder how long this story will end up being? Not to mention the sequel that'll be coming…**

**Today's quote is: "Cats. So many cats. **_**Too**_** many cats. No, **_**never**_** too many cats!"—Morgan M.**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day Four

* * *

Sendai, Japan  
Car  
November 19, 8:15 PM

"Those damn thieves!" Kasuma exclaimed as she pulled onto the expressway towards Aomori. "They did this on purpose… Making such a mess."

"Dey're probably tryin' ta stall us 'n' give demselves more time ta prepare fer da next heist," Hattori muttered from the back seat.

"Shikatanai desu yo," Hakuba replied. "We're talking about KID and Mage here; they love setting traps for us. Mage was much worse in England."

"Yeah, like the time Mage dyed everyone's clothing and hair orange," Kasuma mentioned. "You had that stuff in your hair for days!"

"Just be glad you were sick that day or I would have brought you along with me," Hakuba mumbled.

"…You okay back there, Conan-kun?" Kasuma asked, looking through the rear-view mirror at the boy.

"Un… Just kinda tired." Conan yawned. 'Damn this child's body. I get worn out faster.'

"Then rest up, Conan-kun, we'll figure out the information for the next heist in the meantime," Kasuma answered.

"Aww!" Conan groaned. "But I wanna help find the target!"

"Will you be alright, Conan-kun?" Hakuba asked. "You should get all the sleep you can."

Conan nodded, "I wanna help!"

Kasuma spared Conan one short glance then moved her attention to the teen in the passenger seat. "Hakuba, I have a small laptop in the glove compartment. There's also a USB Broadband Connector somewhere in there. That way, we can browse museum websites for possible targets."

Hakuba opened the compartment in front of him, whistling when he looked inside. "You certainly have lots of electronics in here." Hakuba riffled through said electronics, pulling out an Asus T91MT netbook and digging out a small black and green USB drive. Silently, Hakuba opened up the computer and turned it on, inserting the USB as he waited for the log-in screen to pop up. "Did you use the normal password?"

"Yeah," Kasuma nodded. "It's easier for me to remember that way."

"What happened to your other one? Didn't your parents give you a mini laptop a while back?" Hakuba quickly entered in a password, which the computer accepted, and the log-in screen jumped to the user desktop.

"It's been giving me problems recently so I looked around and found another computer," Kasuma answered, shrugging.

"Ah re re!" Conan exclaimed, "Everything's in English!"

Double-taking after Conan's statement, Hakuba glanced at the screen then started chuckling. "Why, yes it is. I guess I didn't notice the difference since I'm so used to seeing English all over the place. Do you not understand English, Conan-kun?"

Conan shook his head, "That's not the problem. I was just surprised… I was expecting Japanese to show up!"

"Then you're fluent?" Hakuba asked the boy. Conan nodded.

"What about you Hattori-kun, can you understand English?" Kasuma asked.

"Yeah," Hattori answered. "I'm flu'nt as well."

"Ehh?" Kasuma mumbled. "_That'll_ be useful when we reach Seattle. Anyway, Hakuba, try looking around for jewels with 'Vidro' and 'Kahel' in their names. Those should be our first priority."Conan pulled out his phone. "'Vidro' will be the Aomori heist and 'Kahel' will be the Hakodate heist. Those are the ones occurring next. We have five others to look for but, for the moment, we should focus on the two happening tomorrow."

"Wait," Hakuba paused in his searching. "You didn't ask Julia to look for the Seattle targets?"

"I did…" Kasuma answered. "But she hinted that she was going to hop a plane and physically look through possible museums for the 'Fainne' and 'Anello' targets. And if she wants to do _that_ then she'd have to take a nighttime flight tomorrow or an early flight the day after to give herself the weekend to look for the jewels… since she _knows_ I would _never_ want her ditching class to help me."

"'Julia?' Who's that?" Conan asked, looking up from his phone screen.

"One of my friends from America. We went to the same high-school when I was in Portland, Oregon. She can get to Seattle in forty-five minutes and her father has a condo up there, so I guess she figured it'd be better to browse the museums herself."

"I think I found one," Hakuba spoke up. "It's a diamond called 'Vidro Jóia' which translates to 'Glass Jewel.' It was found in the municipality Peniche, near the northern coastline of Portugal nearly three hundred years ago. Currently, it's residing in the Aomori Museum of Art in the Temporary Exhibition Space on the B2 floor."

Hattori smirked, "Da location is already da perfect place fer da jewel. If dey're below ground, it'll take 'em longer ta escape since dey need ta get ta high'r ground ta use t'ose glid'rs."

"However, it's possible that Mage will use a land-based transportation method to escape," Kasuma pointed out.

"Yes, that _is_ possible," Hakuba agreed. "Mage hasn't done so in _years _but Mage _is_ very adept when it comes to grounded escapes.

"Oh yeah, Ran-neechan told me a while ago that Mage only started flying during the last few months of Mage's stay in Europe. For the years before that, Mage always escaped while grounded."

"Sometimes, Mage would slip into the police force, sometimes there would be a costume change and escape via motorcycle or car, but they were always grounded," Hakuba elaborated. "When Mage started flying was also when I started shooting down that glider. The general public always thought of it as bad steering on Mage's part, but that's not the case."

"Yeah. Mage took to flying extremely easily," Kasuma murmured. "Mage was performing complex escape routes right from the get-go… almost as if Mage was _born_ to glide."

"Which led us to believe that Mage simply didn't_ have_ a glider made at the beginning of his or her career… Or that maybe Mage was testing different fabric combinations to create a glider that would work best in all kinds of situations," Hakuba continued.

"So it was Hakuba-niichan who was mysteriously shooting down Mage? The one who always targeted Mage's glider?" Conan asked brightly.

Hakuba nodded. "I simply wanted to force Mage to ground so we'd have an easier time chasing him or her. I'm also the anonymous tipper who notified Nakamori-keibu of Mage's strong suit in regards to grounded escapes."

"Conan-kun, what have you been using your phone for?" Kasuma asked, changing the subject.

"I was looking at museums in Hakodate for possible targets but I don't know what the 'Filipino orange' is so I can't find any specific jewels."

"You could have asked," Hakuba said. "Kasuma is fluent in Tagalog and Visayan… both of them being Filipino languages."

"Tagalog is the national language of the Philippines so it would be best to use their translation of 'orange' which is 'kahel,' spelled, using the Roman alphabet, **k-a-h-e-l**," Kasuma supplied, focus never leaving the road ahead of her.

"Okay… then wouldn't the target be the spinel at Hakodate Museum of Art, Hokkaido called 'Kahel Hi—hiyasu?'" Conan fumbled with the pronunciation. "Spelled **h-i-y-a-s**, in the Roman alphabet."

"'Kahel Hiyas,'" Kasuma provided. "It translates as 'orange jewel' and given that the jewel in question is a spinel… it's no wonder it was given that name… what with orange being one of the colors a spinel can be."

"Is there anything else there about the jewel?" Hakuba asked. "Like its size, where it was found or anything like that?"

"Well…" Conan took some time to review the information he skimmed through. "Its cut is that of a trillion and weighs in at 40 carats which makes its dimensions in millimeters about eighty-eight by eighty-eight… almost nine centimeters," Conan paused as he noticed the _Look_ Kasuma was giving him through the rear-view mirror. The faux boy watched her eyes jerk to Hakuba before refocusing on the road ahead. Conan giggled, "At least… that's what it says here!" he added brightly.

'I swear,' Kasuma shook her head. 'Sometimes you completely forget you're supposed to act like a _child_, don't you Shinichi-kun?' Kasuma peeked at Hattori through the rear-view mirror, "Hattori-kun, you've been awfully quiet. Something on your mind?"

"Eh?" Hattori jerked his head away from the window. "Ah, I've jus' been t'inkin' 'bout da heists aft'r Hakodate."

"Does your phone have web access?" Kasuma asked the dark-skinned teen. She caught Hattori's negative response. "In that case… Hakuba, could you grab the iTouch in the glove compartment and give it to Hattori-kun?"

Shrugging, Hakuba opened up the glove box again. "Sometimes I wonder how you get the money to pay for all this," he muttered. "You have all these expensive items and that large Western-styled house… and bills and taxes aren't very light with houses like that."

"Well, I don't use many rooms in my house so the bills and taxes aren't so bad… and as for these expensive items… that would be because of my uncle. He moved to the States before I was born and gained quite a bit of money there. He would almost always give me really fancy or expensive items for Christmas and for my birthday." Hakuba finally fished out the iTouch and passed it wordlessly back to Hattori. "You can use that to look for the other targets if you'd like, Hattori-kun. The keywords you'd need… at least for the day after tomorrow are 'marmor' and 'esfera'… German and Basque respectively. 'Marmor' is the Sapporo heist and 'esfera' is the Asahikawa heist."

Hattori whistled, "Didja find all o' the names fer the entir' week?"

Kasuma nodded, "When the second half got sent to Division Two, Hakuba and I went to my place and used the dictionaries in the study to find all the translations for the targets… at least what they had _given_ us of the names. We didn't have any time to get any farther than that."

* * *

Aomori, Japan  
Aomori Museum of Art  
November 20, 5:45 AM

Conan let out a huge yawn, rubbing his eyes in the process. "Shinichi-kun, you should have gotten some rest during the car ride," Kasuma whispered from her spot sitting against the wall of the exhibition room.

"I think it's worse for you, Kasuma-chan," Conan whispered back. "You're driving all of us around, you've barely gotten sleep."

"Yes, but my body's grown accustomed to functioning on so little sleep. Your current body needs more sleep than your real one does. The others should be getting some sleep too. Nakamori-keibu's too fired up to rest but Hakuba, at least, should. He's been helping with setup since we got to the museum, about four hours total. Hattori-kun's been off somewhere else so I don't know how _he _is but…" Kasuma trailed off, leaning her head against the wall and closing her eyes. "They're doing this on purpose."

"Aa," Conan nodded, "They _know_ we're gonna spend lots of time preparing for their arrival. They set all those traps at Sendai so we'd be detained; they knew we'd stay behind and clean up the mess they made at the museum and therefore, we couldn't get on the road until eight. It takes three or so hours to drive to Aomori so we arrived at the police station at around eleven and we arrived at the museum about fifteen minutes later, leaving the rest of the time till the heist to get everything setup."

"Well, we're taking a ferry up to Hokkaido, so that'll give us some time to rest before there's another frenzy to get ready for the Hakodate heist." Kasuma watched the Aomori police force as they transported the final batch of artifacts out of the room. Kasuma stood and pulled out a watch, comparing it with the time indicated on the clock in the exhibition room. "Hmm… it's past midnight over there." Kasuma shrugged, pulling out her phone, "I doubt the homework load has changed… in fact, it's probably worse, so she should still be up."

Hattori entered the room just as Kasuma brought her phone to her ear. The dark-skinned detective walked over to Conan and crouched. "Where have you _been_ Hattori?"

Hattori shrugged, "Jus' 'round. Scannin' da museum 'n' stuff. W'at's Syndicate-neechan doin'?"

Conan dead-panned, "I don't think Kasuma-chan would appreciate that name. As to what she's doing, it seems to be an international phone call."

"Sabaah el kheer!" Said teenager exclaimed to the person on the other side of the conversation. A huge grin appeared on her face soon after. "Gomen nasai~! **I was out of practice… As such, I needed to greet you in your native language."**

"Well, now we know she's calling someone in America," Conan muttered.

"And I believe I know who it is," Hakuba murmured as he paused in front of Kasuma, signing off five rapid letters with his right hand. Kasuma nodded to her friend and Hakuba returned the action. "I thought so. She's calling Julia… probably about transportation."

"**Three? The others are coming too?"** Kasuma exclaimed just then. In a calmer voice, she continued, **"Did you guys already get okayed by Sis. Lin.?"**

"And it seems her other friends are flying up to Seattle as well," Hakuba remarked. The British detective tapped Kasuma's shoulder then tapped his pocket watch, which he had extracted from his pocket.

Kasuma nodded again, **"Right. Amunet? I've got to go. I—"**

Several officers, who had previously been transporting artifacts out of the room, returned and took places along the perimeter of the room. Nakamori entered soon after and immediately began spouting commands via radio. Kasuma closed and pocketed her phone, "Now that worries me."

Hakuba jerked his head towards the girl, "What happened?"

Kasuma sighed and closed her eyes, opening them after some time. "Someone disturbed my family's gravesite."

"What?" Hakuba exclaimed. "Were they robbers?"

Kasuma gave a small, sad smirk, "What_ is_ there to steal? There aren't even any bodies—or coffins, for that matter—over there. No, it seems someone was paying their respects. Whoever it was even built a small Japanese shrine. At least… that's what Amunet tells me."

"Built a shrine?" Conan asked. "That's unusual."

"That's not all," Kasuma said as she looked down at Conan briefly. "The strange thing is that only Hakuba, Amunet and the others know about it. Amunet and my other friends… they visit at least once every month… usually to check up on it as well as pay their respects. When Amunet drove over last night, she noticed the shrine on the left side of the driveway—at least, what _use_ to be the driveway. And on the site of the burnt-down house were three or four incense sticks being propped up by a man-made pile of small rocks and dirt… No one else knows about the location."

"The left side? Come to think of it," Hakuba looked over at Kasuma, "Didn't you tell me that that woman disappeared through the forest on the left-hand side of the house?"

''Woman?' Does he mean Vermouth?' Conan thought. 'I can't see why she'd revisit the location of a past mission.'

"Three… Two… One," Hakuba whispered as he glanced at his pocket watch. At that moment, the room was plunged into darkness.

"Who was watching the breaker room?" Nakamori yelled. Cursing, Conan turned on the flashlight in his watch, Kasuma following suit immediately with a small flashlight of her own.

"Sir," one of the officers ran up to Nakamori with help from the two beams of light dimly illuminating the room. "I can't get in touch with Umemura, Hinohara, or Takehana."

"Damnit," Nakamori hissed. "Those bastards must have knocked them out."

"Now that's rude, Keibu," KID's—definitely KID's—voice floated in.

Suddenly there was a yelp and a metallic clatter belonging to a flashlight which had landed near the center of the room. "…Kasuma?" Hakuba asked as he slowly made his way toward the origin of the yelp.

"Ite," Kasuma mumbled as Hakuba, grasping her shoulders, assisted her in sitting up, one hand clutching her stomach.

"Are you alright?"

"Just peachy," the teen muttered. "Either I slipped on some sort of liquid or a fabric of some sort. And seeing as I'm not wet, I assume it was a fabric."

"Oh my! Is that Tantei-chan I hear~?" KID's voice piped up. "There are no lasting injuries, are there?"

"Oh, put a sock in it, KID," Kasuma said, loud enough for KID to hear her response. She stood and headed towards the discarded flashlight, picking it up just as the lights flashed back on. The lights revealed KID standing atop the jewel stand housing Vidro Jóia, arms crossed lightly over his chest. Mage was several feet above him, one hand gripping a taut, black cord that disappeared through a vent in the ceiling. Kasuma and Conan both cut off their light sources.

"My, is that _my_ cape over there?" Mage's neutralized voice asked. "So sorry, Tantei-chan, I have no idea how it got there. I was sure I was wearing it."

Conan gazed down at the large white cloth that indeed was a cape then back up at Mage, who was missing said cape. 'Oi, oi, how could you miss losing _that_?'

"Well, we _do_ have plenty of spares," KID said just then. "_Too_ many, I'm afraid. How e_ver_ are we going to get rid of them all?"

Behind the mask, Mage grinned, "Simple." The room filled with smoke, causing the police force and detectives to cough, reeling, with a hand or arm covering their nose and mouth. When the smoke cleared, the two thieves were gone, the jewel still intact.

"That damn thief," Kasuma growled as she removed a white mask identical to Mage's from her face. "What the hell did they do with my clothes?"

"I believe a better question would be, what did they do with _everyone's_ clothes?" Hakuba grumbled back, removing another mask off of his face. Looking around, all anyone could see were KIDs and Mages; everyone had been dressed in the uniform of one of the two thieves, right down to the mask and monocle.

"Kisama!" Nakamori hissed, not taking in his own KID costume.

"No one gets near the jewel!" Hakuba exclaimed, "Anyone who does will be suspected as being one of the thieves. They blended into the crowd; don't make this easier for them!"

"W'at cou'd dey 'ave done wit' all our stuff?" Hattori huffed.

Kasuma placed the mask down on the ground then made a running start for one of the walls. "Oi, Kasuma!" Hakuba called after her, "What are you doing?" Kasuma didn't answer, instead running into a front handspring and landing on an empty stand. From there, she flipped up onto a ledge, pressing her back against the wall.

"W'at da hell 'r' ya doin'?" Hattori exclaimed.

"I noticed something," Kasuma answered, slamming her hand against a box a foot above her head. With the box destroyed, a trap door opened up in the ceiling, the clothing of all the room occupants floating down to the ground.

"You saw that from over here?" Hakuba asked as he eyed the teen on the other side of the room.

Kasuma shrugged. Then something caught her eye and Kasuma gasped, extending a finger towards the center of the room. "Vidro Jóia… Vidro Jóia is gone!"

"What?" Nakamori exclaimed, jerking his head towards the jewel stand to find no such jewel.

"Block all the exits!" Hakuba ordered. "Don't let anyone out, KID and Mage are still in here!"

"That's _my_ line," Nakamori hissed.

A strange sound exiting her mouth, Kasuma flipped down off the ledge and landed in a crouch on the exhibition space's floor. "How did they even get to the jewel? I could see a distinct empty circle around the jewel when I was up there. No one entered."

"They must have rigged the case when they first appeared," Conan muttered with a quiet curse.

"_Keibu, KID and Mage's gliders are flying away from the museum," _an officer's voice said through the radio.

"Nani?" Nakamori grabbed his radio and held it up to his mouth, "Are you sure?"

"No, it's not KID and Mage," Kasuma said, standing up. "It can't be. We're two floors underground; they couldn't have escaped this room that easily. We'd've seen them leaving."

"It must have been an assistant who released the fake gliders," Hakuba continued, "Or a remote control."

Nakamori cursed colorfully then hollered into the radio, "Check to see if they're dummies!"

"_Ryokai,"_ the officer answered.

"_Keibu,"_ a different officer came in through the radio. _"It really seems to be KID and Mage. We are chasing them south."_

"Are you sure they're not dummies?" Nakamori asked the officer.

"_Y-yes, we just saw KID salute us through our binoculars. It's definitely them."_

"… Then how did they get out of the room?" Kasuma mumbled.

"Continue the chase," Nakamori ordered. "Try to catch up to them."

There was an exclamation on the other side of the line before the officer said, _"Impossible! Keibu, KID and Mage just disappeared as they were flying between two high-rises!"_

Kasuma looked down at her watch, "They won't reappear until Hakodate."

"We might as well return all the artifacts into the room," Conan murmured.

"Nakamori-keibu," Hakuba began as he walked up to the inspector. "Maybe we should investigate the area they disappeared in. We may find some trace of them. And on the ground, they couldn't have gotten too far at this point."

"I agree," Nakamori nodded. To the rest of the officers in the room, he exclaimed, "Have half of the gathered force investigate the two high-rises and the area around them. The other half will stay here and tidy up the room."

"After they retrieve their uniforms, that is," Kasuma muttered, crouching down and extracting her clothes from the pile of clothing on the floor.

* * *

Haido City, Japan  
Haido City Hotel  
November 20, 9:47 AM

She sat on the edge of the bed, right leg crossed over the left. An open book lay to her left and she stared at the intricate lettering on the first page. A phone sitting next to the book broke her from her reverie. Taking it in her hand, she stared at the screen, reading the new message that had arrived. Without replying, she set it back on the mattress. 'I would not expect Bourbon to make such a poor mistake in tracking Sherry. To think he completely lost track of her months ago only to spot her again in that professor's home less than a week ago… five days ago, to be exact.' Vermouth flipped the page of the album with care, the photos carrying memories she had locked away years ago flooding back to the forefront of her mind. 'Such a powerful family… nearly extinct. It would be a shame if her last offspring should die off. And seeing as her brother hasn't produced any children, the Group would fall apart with no rightful heir.' The page turned again and the Organization operative scanned the images. She smirked as her eyes fell onto the picture of a young child, 'You've been trained under the Organization. Yet you're using that training in such an unconventional way. I wonder if that method of yours will bear some fruit.' Vermouth flipped the page again and opened a mini laptop at the same time. Scanning through the various mails sent to her, Vermouth gave a cold smile. "Let's see what we have here… New trainees, mechanic advances, modifications to a few of our drugs, oh," Vermouth's smile widened ever so slightly, "Well, well, well. So have I become the mediator for your little group…Snake? Hmm," Vermouth lightly tapped a random key, "No new findings? Of course not… I've been very careful about that glorious prize. Everyone who knows its true name has been disposed of… except me, of course." Vermouth chuckled coldly, "Even Sensei…" Vermouth closed the album and slid it in between the mattresses of her hotel bed. 'However, it may not be long until it is found again.'

* * *

Hakodate, Japan  
Hakodate Museum of Art, Hokkaido  
August 20, 9:50 PM

"W'at'r ya two doin' ov'r t'ere?" Hattori asked Kasuma and Hakuba, who were crouched over a computer in the corner of the exhibition space in the museum.

"Trying to find the quickest route to Sapporo," Kasuma answered. "But the fastest route we've found so far is approximately four hours and forty minutes."

"Which is a _huge_ problem," Hakuba murmured. "Unless we speed… which Kasuma, I'm sure, won't mind."

"'Y is dat a problem?" Hattori asked.

"The Sapporo heist is set to begin at two in the morning. No matter how fast this next heist ends, we can't get there in time unless we do some major speeding," Kasuma elaborated, a frown etched on her face.

"How about a train?" Conan asked as he walked up to them.

"No good," Kasuma shook her head. "We already asked around. None of the officers have enough money to get tickets. Besides, the train trip would also be about four hours… unless we get tickets for a plane which _still_ wouldn't work."

"When attending a WLH, you learn to pack _extremely_ light," Hakuba grumbled, "Which means almost no money. Mage etched that into all our minds."

"No one really even bothers anyway… since the transportation routes are already planned out and paid by Mage. We'd only bring enough to cover the basics like food and gas, if there was a car drive at some point," Kasuma continued.

"We already told Nakamori-keibu about this and we _highly_ stressed that he contact the Sapporo police force ahead of time so they can start preparing," Hakuba said. "That way, we won't be in such a pinch preparation-wise when the heist comes around."

"Well, Keibu-han's on da phone rig't now so he's prob'ly doin' dat rig't now," Hattori murmured as he watched the inspector pace the museum with his cell phone pressed against his ear. Just as the inspector closed and pocketed his phone, a cloud of smoke engulfed the room. When the cloud dispelled, KID and Mage were perched on high ledges on either side of the room.

"Hello again," Mage began in a cheery tone.

"We'll be swift," KID said next. "After all, we all have to get going, correct? Our next stop is quite far." The two thieves dropped several smoke bombs down from their positions and both their figures blurred as they moved into action. When the smoke cleared, both the thieves and the jewel Kahel Hiyas had disappeared.

"They're not wasting any time," Hakuba remarked.

"And neither should we," Kasuma said. To Nakamori, she continued with, "Get a siren on your rental car! And take this GPS," Kasuma tossed said GPS to the inspector. "It's already set for the museum Hattori-kun found. Use the siren to get us there quicker; I'll be right behind you. We _need_ to cut our travel time so _speed_. The other cars will get out of our way." Nakamori nodded his agreement and ran out of the room, the other Task Force officers and detectives following him.

**Final Notes: I don't know what the policy in Japan is for passing emergency vehicles (with sirens on) so I'll be using the policy I'm most familiar with. This chapter again was a tad shorter but not by much.**

**Arabic Translation  
****Sabaah el kheer **(Good morning)

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan:**__** "I guess coming from the same background as me helps."**_


	23. Extra: Encounter

**A/N: Hi everyone! No, this is not a new chapter (however it **_**will**_** appear in a later chapter :D) but another Extra. Why is there no new chapter? Well that's because life caught up to me… or maybe I should say life caught up to Cai-chan. She's been pretty busy as of late and hasn't gotten around to finishing her BETA of the next chapter. And since I didn't want to leave you hanging for too long, I found something from my collection of future chapter segments to show you. This scene I'm about to show you is when Kasuma and Hakuba first meet. Enjoy~!**

* * *

Extra: Encounter

* * *

A small toddler jumped down from the low platform of the play-structure, grabbing some bark chips as she lost her footing briefly. Instead of whimpering like she saw another kid doing, she giggled to herself and stood up, shaking the loose wood chips off her hands. She rotated and caught sight of her parents, the two of them waving the girl over. She complied and rapidly headed towards them. Suddenly, her foot caught a random rock lying about and she pitched foreword. Before she hit the ground, however, one arm wrapped around her waist and she was hoisted back up on her feet. "Whoopies. Daijoubu?" a woman with short blonde hair asked the girl.

"Un. Heiki da yo. Arigato gozaimasu, oba-san."

"Ah ra? Kono youna teineina ko!" the woman was cut off by a little boy who was clutching the woman's pant leg. She bent down to the boy and nudged him saying, in English, **"Why don't you introduce yourself?"** the girl's parents appeared just then, talking to the woman in English as well.

The girl smiled brightly, "Konnichiwa! Anata no namae wa?"

The boy stared back blankly, clearly confused. "Nihongo o rikai suru ka?" The girl continued.

It was then that the blonde woman turned back and responded, **"She asked 'What is your name?'"**

"**Saguru Hakuba."** The boy said promptly after hearing the translation. **"What's yours?"**

The girl's mother translated for her. Smiling again she answered, "Takashi Kasuma!"

"**What a pretty name… Kasuma."** Hakuba's mother responded. She nudged her son again, **"Go on. Don't be shy. Why don't you two play over there?"** the woman pointed to the play structure.

Kasuma, understanding—at least to some extent— nodded and dragged the unsuspecting toddler of male gender to the play area.

Sometime later, if you looked around, you would see two toddlers, one bearing long brown hair and the other bearing short blonde hair. The two of them were having the time of their lives… well as much as they could, considering the two of them couldn't understand each other. Well, scratch that, for it seemed the two of them understood each other perfectly… without the use of language. Not that language wasn't used; both Kasuma and Hakuba seemed to have learned something from the other. "Kaa-chan, Tou-chan, juu eigo o kaunto suru houhou o mananda!" One happy Kasuma exclaimed, "Soshite, Hakuba-kun juu nihongo de kaunto suru houhou o mananda!"

"Well, well, let's see what you two have, ne Helen-chan?" Helen and Hiromi crouched down and looked expectantly at their respective children. Kasuma took the initiative and started, "Won… to… turi… poru… pibu… sikusu… seben… eto… naen… ten!"

The two mothers giggled and smiled knowingly before Hakuba shyly began. "Itchy… knee… sun… she… go… rocku… shechi… hatchi… cue… ju."

There was a short applause as Helen and Hiromi giggled again. "Yoi shigoto o tsugi no futari tomo. Hijou ni yoi shigoto gengo o shiyou toshite, saisho no jikan o." Hiromi praised as Helen said, **"A job well done, Kasuma, Saguru. We're proud of you two,"** Simultaneously.

**Final Notes: Well, there you go. You'll be seeing this same snippet (maybe with some small changes) in a later chapter but I posted this now to give you all something to read since Cai-chan hasn't been able to finish BETAing chapter 19. Happy (early) Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukkah, and any other celebrations going on at this time of the year!**

**Translation  
****Japanese  
****Un. Heiki da yo. Arigato gozaimasu, oba-san**. (Yeah. I'm fine. Thank you, Miss.)  
**Ah ra? Kono youna teineina ko!** (Eh? Such a polite child!)  
**Konnichiwa! Anata no namae wa?** (Hello! What is your name?)  
**Nihongo o rikai suru ka?** (Do you understand Japanese?)  
**Kaa-chan, Tou-chan, juu eigo o kaunto suru houhou o mananda!** (Mom, Dad, I learned how to count to ten in English!)  
**Soshite, Hakuba-kun juu nihongo de kaunto suru houhou o mananda**! (And Hakuba-kun learned how to count to ten in Japanese!)  
**Yoi shigoto o tsugi no futari tomo. Hijou ni yoi shigoto gengo o shiyou toshite, saisho no jikan o.** (Good job you two. Very good job for your first time trying out the languages.)


	24. Day Five (19)

**A/N: Part thirteen of the Pandora Arc! I'm so sorry about the late update. My only excuse? Life happened. There was Encounter and sick days and all that shiz so Cai-chan couldn't get around to BETAing as fast.  
****Warnings: Time zone jumps (keep that in mind… just so you don't get yourselves confused)  
****Acknowledgements: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): The WLH chapters are gradually getting shorter… ^_^" Oh well, there's only two more left…**

**Review Reply(s)  
****Cutie998xxanime: I'm sorry to disappoint you but I will **_**not**_** reveal anything about your theory, right or wrong. At some point, I **_**will**_** confirm or deny your theory but I like to keep you guys in the dark. :D And yes, there **_**will**_** be a romance between Kasuma and someone else as well as the other traditional canon pairings…**

**Today's quote is: "It's not 'Give me your clothes and switch places with me,' it's 'Take off your pants.'"—Nat Wee (It makes sense in context)**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day Five

* * *

Sapporo, Japan  
Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art  
November 21, 1:52 AM

"We made it," Kasuma said, letting out a long breath.

"And with eight minutes and forty-three seconds to spare," Hakuba murmured. "I was getting worried when we hadn't reached Sapporo with fifteen minutes until the heist time." The British detective caught Kasuma yawning as he walked past her. "Kasuma, you should rest. It'll be bad if you're tired on the drive up to Asahikawa."

Kasuma waved her hand dismissively, "I'll be fine. Before we leave Sapporo, I'll get something caffeinated. Maybe I'll splash myself with cold water or something, but don't worry, there's no way I'm gonna let myself doze off while driving."

"So… lots of chocolate?" Hakuba asked, already knowing the answer.

Kasuma grinned. "The darkest chocolate I can find."

"So what are we working with?" Nakamori asked the head of the Sapporo police force, nodding his head towards the jewel.

"Weiß Marmor, a twenty-five carat rainbow moonstone worth about thirteen thousand yen," the man, Sasaki Arata—a heavy-set fellow in his early forties—informed. "Not much is known about its past except, ironically, it had been hidden away so as not to receive any light from the sun _or_ moon."

"Well, that _definitely_ sounds like something those two would be after," Hakuba murmured.

"And you would be absolutely correct, Holmes," Mage's voice fluttered in from everywhere and nowhere. Fog seeped in from all four corners of the room, concealing the ground before rising up and filling the entire room. When the fog machines shut off and the fog cleared, KID and Mage were standing on a long display case.

KID stepped forward and grinned. "Well, we'll be leaving soon. Got some last minute errands to run." The fog machines activated again, the thick fog filling the entire room. The jewel and phantom thieves were gone when the fog cleared.

Growling, Nakamori exclaimed through the radio, "Give chase! Find KID and Mage!"

One of the officers immediately responded with, _"We can't Keibu. The hallways are filled with some sort of fog. We can't see anything!"_

Kasuma, who had been kneeling down next to one of the fog machines KID and Mage placed, jerked her head over to Nakamori, "Open the room's doors! I know how to shut these things off."

"Really?" Nakamori asked, a little skeptical. Kasuma nodded and two men from the Sapporo police force opened the door to let Kasuma slip out.

"How does she know how to work these things?" Conan asked, bending over to examine the fog machine Kasuma had been by. "This one looks really complicated."

"Her friend Crystal has an aunt who runs an indoor firework business. They use these kinds of fog machines in their shows," Hakuba explained. "I recognize that manufacturer from one of the shows Crystal invited us to." Something in Hakuba's pocket vibrated and Hakuba extracted his phone. "She just turned off the last of the machines, let's get going." Nakamori led the group out of the room, splitting the attendees up to search the museum.

Kasuma was leaning against her car, staring at the road, when the other three invited detectives noticed her. Walking up to the teen and sitting on the hood of the car, Hakuba said, "No sign of the thieves inside the museum."

Kasuma didn't reply right away, eyes still focused on the street. When she broke her gaze to instead look at Hakuba, she replied with, "After I shut off all the machines, I ran outside and stayed out here. I didn't see any hang gliders passing by and no one exited the building except for you three. They must have made it out when everyone was distracted by the fog machines and they must have left by means of a car or similar vehicle. I was speedy and all the machines were conveniently placed near windows; I never saw any hang gliders leaving the museum."

"We got da same results," Hattori spoke up. "None a' da ex'ibition rooms or storag' rooms 'ere used as hidin' places 'n' no one saw any glid'rs leavin' da place."

"If Mage brought along that motorcycle, they could have escaped using that," Hakuba added. "Even though white is a flashy color, we would not be able to find them in the city."

Kasuma glanced down at her watch. "Geez, have you guys been running around the museum for two hours? It's a little past four am."

Conan looked at his own watch, "I guess we have… Wow, completely lost track of time."

"Den we shou'd probab'y head out fer Asahikawa, I suppos'," Hattori mused.

"But first," Hakuba began. "_You_," Hakuba nudged Kasuma's shoulder, "should get rest… Or—if you must—get that chocolate you mentioned to keep you awake. Though, frankly, it would do you better to go with the 'rest' idea."

Kasuma shrugged off both Hakuba's hand and comment. "It's fine. Being out here has woken me up a bit. Though I still plan on stopping by a store or something to get some of that dark chocolate… I could also go for some minty gum but I'm awake enough to take a two hour drive to Asahikawa."

"…Why aren't you wearing something thicker?" Hakuba asked then. "You are such an idiot. Winter is approaching and you're _still_ wearing short-sleeves?" Hakuba motioned towards the short-sleeve purple shirt Kasuma was wearing. Kasuma shrugged once again, not responding, and pushed off the blue car, moving around the hood of the car and opening the door to the driver's seat.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
November 21, 4:18 PM

Glass beakers clicked against each other, a small, careful hand pushing them off to the side. Nimble hands grasped a microscope and lifted it up onto the table, taking care to set it gently on the flat surface. "Are you alone, Ai-chan?" Kasuma's voice resonated from the land line phone sitting on the table, the phone itself set to speakerphone so the scientist could work freely.

Haibara slid a slide under the scope's lens, bringing her eyes up to the eyepiece. "No," she spoke loud enough for the teenager on the other line to hear. "Hakase is in your library, browsing through your collection of books… probably in the science section."

"Good," Haibara could hear Kasuma sigh, "Be careful over there. A few days before I moved back to Japan, I got an e-mail from the rat talking about a new operative who excels in intelligence gathering, observation, and discernment. I think this agent is trying to find you."

"Oi, should you _really_ be talking about this? Aren't you with the other people invited by those thieves?" Haibara asked, jotting down some notes inside a notebook to her right.

"No," Kasuma said bluntly. "Hakuba's with Nakamori at the museum here in Asahikawa and Hattori-kun and Shinichi-kun are roaming the area around the museum. I drove off right after I dropped them off."

"Why?"

"I needed to meet a friend of my father. He's gonna get my car back to Tokyo after the heist here. I finished meeting him about a half hour ago; now I'm just sitting in my car outside a convenience store. By the way, how's your theory doing? Any progress?"

"Not much," Haibara sighed, removing the slide and replacing it with a different one, peering into the eyepiece again. She jotted some more notes down in the notebook then reached for a test tube rack. "I've been testing different combinations with different bio-chemicals and watching how they react with the blood samples I got from you and Kudo-kun… I also threw in samples of my own blood for comparison, but I haven't gotten anything helpful. In fact, I need some more chemicals. Would it be possible for you to get the ones I need?"

"I'll see what I can do," Kasuma answered. "I might be able to convince my old science teachers to give me some chemicals from their stock. I could also get Crystal to talk to her grade-school science teacher. He also has a good supply of chemicals. Just tell me what I need to get." Haibara picked up a sheet of paper that was resting by the computer several centimeters away, reading the list off to Kasuma. "That's all?" Kasuma asked when Haibara finished reading the list.

"Yeah. For now, at least." Haibara sighed, "Sometimes I think this antidote search is a lost cause. It was supposed to kill… there's no antidote to give to a _dead_ person. But Kudo-kun…" Haibara trailed off, shaking her head.

"'I want to help him regain his real body,'" Kasuma said. "'And it would help atone for my past mistakes.' That's what you're thinking, isn't it?"

Haibara smirked sadly, mixing the contents of two beakers, the color changing subtly. "Even when you're miles away, you can still read me like a book. I guess coming from the same background as me helps."

"Ah… I just remembered," Kasuma changed the subject. "Can you relay a message to Ran-san?"

"S-sure…" Haibara murmured, moving over to the computer and recording her data into the computer's hard drive.

"Tell her that Shi—I mean Conan-kun is doing fine… rather annoyed at KID and Mage's antics but fine nonetheless," Kasuma told the young scientist.

"Alright," Haibara said, nodding. "I'll be sure to tell her."

"Thank you, Ai-chan."

"No problem," Haibara mumbled. Jumping off the step stool and walking purposefully towards a long—not tall, with Haibara's current height taken into account—cabinet, Haibara grabbed a bottle of acetic acid, a bottle of formamide, a Petri tray, and a flint lighter. "Oh, the other day when the Shonen Tantei-dan invited themselves to your place, they came across your brother's games. They really wanted to play them but I told them they'd have to get permission from you first. Is… that alright with you?"

"Uh… yeah… that would be fine," Kasuma said after a while. "Sorry, I wasn't expecting them to actually _find_ his stash of games. They can knock themselves out. I haven't played those games in years, it'd be a waste if they weren't put to good use. Tell them they can help themselves to any of the games in that house… I'm not worried about any of them being too mature for those kids, since Takeo was their age when he died."

"Hmm… I'll let them know. Although I'll leave out the 'deceased brother' tidbit," Haibara mused.

Kasuma gave a short chuckle, "Yeah, that would be best. Those kids don't need to know about Takeo."

"Anyway, when should you be getting back to the rest of the group?" Haibara asked, turning the sink on and cleaning the Petri tray more thoroughly.

"Soon," Kasuma said. "I told them I wouldn't be too long so if I don't head back soon, they may get worried. So, I guess I'll see you in a few days. Ja ne." Kasuma hung up and the line went dead, a long beeping sound coming from the phone. Haibara dried her hands then walked over to the phone, turning it off and replacing it on its stand. There was a polite knock on the door of the lab and Agasa opened it several seconds later.

"Ai-kun? Genta-kun and the others are here. They're looking for you."

"Alright." Setting the Petri tray on a towel to air dry, Haibara shrugged off her small white lab coat, draped it over the back rest of the black chair in the room and walked towards the door. Stretching her arm up to the doorknob, Haibara shut the door then, using a key Kasuma had made after the scientist moved in with her, locked the door for extra insurance.

* * *

Asahikawa, Japan  
Asahikawa Museum of Art, Hokkaido  
November 21, 5:15 PM

As Kasuma parked her car behind Nakamori's rental car and exited, she was immediately greeted by Hakuba, who had been standing on the steps of the museum. "I was wondering when you'd show up. You've been gone for hours… since you dropped us off here at 9:26:51, in fact."

Kasuma shrugged, twirling her car keys around a finger. "My destination was pretty far away… not to mention there was a lot of reminiscing to be had when I actually got there. After all, it had been years since he last saw my father, even _longer_ since he saw me. By the way, where's everyone else? Are Hattori-kun and Conan-kun still roaming the surrounding area?"

"They circled back here about three hours ago. After looking around the museum once or twice, those two went back outside to roam some more. Nakamori-keibu and the other officers are inside with the police force the Asahikawa Prefectural Police sent."

"Well, the officers will be fine," Kasuma mused. "If anything, they'll be _glad_ the 'teenagers aren't around.' I'll look around for the other two." Hakuba nodded and turned back towards the museum, leaving Kasuma by herself. After pocketing her keys, Kasuma began walking along the perimeter of the museum. An hour passed before Kasuma ran into Hattori and Conan sitting in the grass in front of a lake. Silently, Kasuma seated herself by Conan, lying down in the grass, her long hair fanning around her head.

"Didja jus' get back?" Hattori asked.

"Got back an hour ago," Kasuma replied, staring up at the clouds. "Spent until now looking for you two."

"Hmm," Conan glanced at his watch. "We've got about four hours until we should head back."

"Tryin' ta think o' ways ta pass da time?" Hattori asked with a grin, skipping a smooth stone across the water, skimming the surface twice before plunging into the water.

"If it's to pass the time, then how about 'Two Truths and a Lie?' It's a great way to get to know the participants," Kasuma suggested. "Have you guys heard of it?"

* * *

Seattle, Washington  
Cristalla Condominiums  
November 21, 1:15 AM

_TAP. TAP. TAP._ Colorful fingernails tapped the polished marble countertop, the figure—a female—leaning over said countertop. On the couch behind her sat a large zebra-print pillow, a fuzzy, penguin Pillow Pet sitting next to it. Sitting on the tiled floor, leaning against the back of the black leather couch, was another female, a computer sitting on her lap, Korean music playing quietly. **"Julia, are you **_**sure**_** there's something here to eat?"** A third figure—yet another female—was rummaging through the refrigerator, head disappearing behind the fridge door.

Julia, the one sitting on the floor with a computer on her lap, looked up, **"Yeah. My dad was up here a few days ago. There should still be some food here. Did you try the cabinets, Rianna?"**

"**Hmm,"** Closing the fridge door, Rianna opened the door to a tall, brown wooden cabinet. **"Hey… Oreos!"**

At that exclamation, there was a collective jump from the other two people in the condominium as they made a mad dash for the cookies. **"Sweet. I'm starving!"** the third female exclaimed.

"**You're **_**always**_** hungry, Crystal,"** Julia pointed out with a grin.

"**Like you should be talking,"** Crystal muttered under her breath.

Rianna picked up the container of Oreo cookies and went towards the couch, hopping over the back and landing on a cushion. The narrow, white table in front of the couch was cluttered with large textbooks: a thick biology book with a chemistry book sitting atop it, an even _thicker_ English book, and a blue US history book. **"Hey, Julia, did you find any possible museums for what Kasuma was looking for?"**

Julia nodded, picking up her computer and sitting down on the couch, placing the computer on the stack of books on the table. **"The closest one is the SAM, so later today, we should go there first. Kasuma also told me to look in the surrounding cities and there are some likely options outside Seattle. We have today and tomorrow to search before Kasuma and her friends are coming."**

"**Geez, it's been so **_**looong**_** since we've seen her!" **Rianna drawled, stretching her arms above her head.

Crystal quirked an eyebrow, **"It's only been six months."**

"**That's half a year,"** Rianna retorted. **"That's a long time!"**

"**It would have been even longer if Mage and that new partner didn't decide to jump over here,"** Julia pointed out.** "Really, we have KID and Mage to thank."**

"**I don't know about you two, but I wanna see that heist."** Crystal sighed, **"Too bad it'll likely be cordoned off by the police."**

"**For Ra's sake, this table is getting too crowded,"** Julia groaned, beginning to stack the books into one pile.

"**No, no, no, leave those there!"** Crystal exclaimed. **"We need finish our homework. We can**_**not**_** put it off. If we do, then we'll **_**never**_** get it done after Kasuma gets here. You two **_**know**_** we won't."**

Rianna shrugged. **"I hate to admit it but Crystal is right: we'll get **_**waaay**_** too distracted with Kasuma here,"** she said half teasingly.

"**Gee, **_**thanks**_**," **Crystal deadpanned, sarcasm dripping off her voice. **"Oh, what time is it over there?"**

"**Let me see…"** Rianna pulled out her phone. **"About… five thirty-five p.m., I think. Isn't the difference between Pacific Time and Japan time like seventeen hours?"**

"**Something like that,"** Julia shrugged, yawning and rubbing her eyes. **"I don't know about you, but I'm getting' some zzz's." **Julia grabbed her fuzzy, black and white Pillow Pet and turned off her computer, carrying it with her as she disappeared down the hall.

* * *

Asahikawa, Japan  
Asahikawa Museum of Art, Hokkaido  
November 21, 10:37 PM

"How c'n ya _not_ like _bas'ball?_" Hattori exclaimed, throwing his arms into the air.

"Like you should be talking Mister Ellery-Queen-Is-All-That," Kasuma shot back.

"He is!" Hattori retorted. "Have you _read_ any of the books?"

"I own and have read all the books but that's not saying much considering the size of my library," Kasuma replied. "I've got books from all kinds of genres in that room and considering the fact that I had no social life because of the Organization—outside of hanging out with Hakuba—I've read almost all of the books in there. That still doesn't change the fact that I'm a Poirot fan and always will be."

"Why 'r' ya ev'n pickin' on me? Ya've criticiz'd me on my mart'al arts, my fav'rite trav'l sites, my sports int'rests, 'n' my readin' sel'ction but I hav'n't 'eard ya crack anyt'in' on _Kudo!_ Is t'ere a 'Pick on Hattori Heiji Day' I don't kno' 'bout? I wasn't da only one playin' dat game!"

"Maybe it's just fun to pick on you," Kasuma retorted. Reaching the steps of the museum, Kasuma bounded past Hakuba, who was at the top of the stairs, and entered the museum, turning and sticking her tongue out childishly at Hattori.

Hakuba watched the teen quietly. When Hattori and Conan climbed the flight of stairs, Hakuba's voice stopped the two of them, the British detective almost shoulder to shoulder with Hattori. "Despite my dislike of you, I suppose I should thank you for getting Kasuma to act like that."

Hattori _stared_ at the detective. "W'at're ya talkin' 'bout?"

Hakuba shut his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, he was staring dejectedly at the ground. Both Conan and Hattori were taken aback by the alien look on Hakuba's face. "You will see when December rolls about… That is… if you stick around long enough to see just what I'm talking about. I have not seen her like that in years."

Hattori locked eyes with Hakuba for a brief moment before he tore away from the British detective's gaze to look down at Conan, who seemed to have come to a realization. Conan met Hattori's gaze, engaging in a silent conversation. 'Ya t'ink it's _Dem?'_ Hattori's expression seemed to say.

Conan nodded subtly, 'It's gotta be.'

Hakuba closed his eyes again and swiveled, back turning towards Hattori, heading back inside the museum, composed once again. "The heist is about to start. You'd best get inside lest you get locked out of the museum."

"Huh," Hattori began when Hakuba disappeared. "Well dat waz…"

"Weird?" Conan offered.

"Yeaaah," Hattori dragged out. "W'at's wrong with Syndicate-neechan durin' December? Does she get psychotic er som'thin'?"

Conan shrugged. "Wouldn't know… haven't known her that long." Conan and Hattori entered the museum and walked down several hallways in order to reach one room near the center of the museum. Upon entering, the two detectives were met with a familiar set-up: officers lined the perimeter of the museum, poised and alert should anything happen. The exhibition room had been cleared of all other artifacts save for the target, a spherical color change sapphire named Esfera Mundu. Near the wall on the far side, Kasuma was lying down on the tiled floor, eyes closed, with Hakuba sitting against the wall to her right. Nakamori and the other three Task Force officers were in the middle of the room, cluttered around the jewel.

"Hmm… looks like ev'ryt'in's ready," Hattori murmured as he and Conan reached the center of the room.

"Eh…?" Nakamori looked up at the pair, "Oh, uh, yeah. We're placing guards at all the entrances right now. Hopefully someone will notice when KID and Mage bolt."

Conan wandered past Nakamori to stand by Kasuma's shoulder, "…Kasuma-neechan…?"

Kasuma opened an eye, "Yeah? What's up?"

Conan shook his head. "Nothing. It just looked like you were sleeping." Kasuma didn't reply, instead shutting her eye. "Ne, Hakuba-niichan?" Hakuba looked at the boy. "How much time do we have left?"

Hakuba read the time on his pocket watch. "Three minutes and fifty-one point nine seconds," Hakuba informed the boy. Hakuba turned his attention back to Kasuma, "Now will you _please_ stop being so stubborn and actually _listen_ to me for once? You…"

Conan walked back over to Hattori, who was still standing near the jewel target. "It's almost time," Conan said to the teen. Hattori nodded then swept his gaze around the room.

At that moment, a pair of doves flew into the room, soaring just above the reach of every officer in the room. Not paying any heed to the officers and detectives in the room, the doves flew off in two different directions. With soft coos, the two doves tapped a certain area of the wall closest to them, triggering two propane flame jets, angled up towards the center of the room. The flames licked the tips of several fire sprinklers, activating them. There was a collective sweep of curses across the room, one of them belonging to Kasuma, who had bolted up with the sudden torrent of water. "Oh, dear! Did Xe'rox and Egao do something naughty?" KID appeared on a ledge near the ceiling, giving a sharp whistle that beckoned the two doves over to him. KID tapped the head of a grey dove with black spots lining its wings lightly, "Xe'rox, Aibou will not be happy with that behavior. You can't just go around activating propane jets like that!"

"Unless I give him permission, that is," Mage's standard neutralized voice spoke up. Mage stood on another ledge on the other side of the room, flicking off drops of water off her white suit. "Oh well, what's done is done."

Suddenly, the propane jets activated again, causing the sprinklers to douse the flame again. It was then that one of the thieves released several smoke bombs, enshrouding the room with a thick blue cloud. When the cloud broke apart and thinned, KID was standing on the jewel case, grasping Esfera Mundu in a gloved hand. He stared at one of the propane jets thoughtfully, "Hmm, they must be malfunctioning… That's odd." KID slipped the jewel into a velvet pouch and tucked it in an inside pocket of his jacket. Slapping the sleeves of his white suit with a small frown at the liquid gathering, KID sighed dramatically, "I hope all this water doesn't ruin my suit. This is my favorite one!"

"KID!" Nakamori bellowed. He and several officers who hadn't been given perimeter duty, charged for the thief, lunging for any scrap of fabric they could grab hold of. They missed. With a loud, hearty laugh, KID ducked out of the way, disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"…Ne… Where's Mage?" Conan asked, jerking his head around the room, searching for said thief.

"Run, run as fast as you can," Mage's voice fluttered in, "You can't catch me I'm the Phantom Thief Mage." With a brief chuckle, Mage's voice faded out, timed perfectly with the sudden _BANG_ from the doors, which had flown open.

Swearing colorfully, Nakamori ordered all the officers to 'Give chase and find those damn thieves!'

**Final Notes: Well, look at that… you got an early introduction to Kasuma's three friends from America. I did not count on that happening…  
****Oh, gotta love arguments… playful or not…**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "If you're tired, you should rest. Your 'friend' seems to like that idea."**_


	25. Day Six (20)

**A/N: Part fourteen of the Pandora Arc!  
****Warnings: Time Zone jump and languages.  
****Acknowledgments: Cai-chan for BETA-ing, Jiwon-chan (that sounds weird) for fixing the Korean translations, and Mari-chan for once again fixing the French translation! Love ya!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): ARG! Figuring out all these routes and times is getting waaay too confusing. And I know in Chapter 15 (18 by FanFiction's count), I said they'd be taking a plane from Sapporo to Seattle but according to Wikipedia, the Shin (New) Chitose Airport (the airport I chose) also serves the Sapporo Metropolitan area (even though they're still a decent ways away). Please just roll with it… :D**

**Today's quote is: "How did they get carts into the city?"—Unknown  
**"**When they finally got the freaking raeda out of the fossa!"—Iocus  
**"**Did you just say something about me?"—Rogo**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day Six

* * *

Chitose, Japan  
Shin-Chitose Airport  
November 22, 12:51 AM

Kasuma slouched back into the black chair several meters from the gate entrance, two duffle bags and two backpacks, one small and one large, at her feet. Her phone vibrated, notifying her of a new text message. "Who is it?" Hakuba asked as he handed her a large cup of hot chocolate.

Kasuma accepted the cup, setting it carefully between her knees as she replied, fingers dancing across the keypad, "Amunet. She and the others think they found one of the targets in the Seattle Art Museum. They're heading over to the museum to check it out."

"Hmm." Hakuba took a seat next to Kasuma, dragging the larger of the two backpacks over to him. "Anyway, you really should better organize your wallet." Hakuba handed Kasuma said wallet. "It took me a while until I found some yen in that thing. You _do_ realize the bulk of your currency is in American dollars, don't you?"

Kasuma grabbed the brown wallet and slipped it into her blue duffle bag. "I know that. I meant to do that… since I really don't wanna have to borrow money from the others. Most of the yen I brought was used up during pit stops and such."

"Oi! You two!" Nakamori's voice cut in, the inspector standing next to the boarding lady. "They're boarding First Class now!"

Sighing, Kasuma stood, hot beverage in one hand, her blue bag in the other. Hakuba picked up his own backpack and slung it over one shoulder, Conan and Hattori running up to them to collect their own bags. "This heist is gonna be troublesome," Kasuma murmured.

"Yea'," Hattori nodded. "Especially b'cuz we won't kno' where da jewel is."

"But that only means it'll be even _more_ troublesome for KID and Mage," Hakuba replied. "If we don't know where the jewel is, then KID and Mage won't be able trick it out of us."

"That is to say, we're even," Conan mumbled. "They can't get to the jewel and neither can we." They walked through a narrow, covered ramp to the plane's front entrance, locating their seats near the middle of the first class section. There were a few other passengers already seated, all of their features conveniently concealed by various objects such as newspapers or books or even hats. Sweeping his eyes around the cabin once, Conan took an aisle seat next to Kasuma, Hattori claiming the third seat in the row. Hakuba was hovering by the row in front of the three seated detectives, watching Nakamori as he walked up to the captain and flight attendants.

Kasuma slid her bag under the seat in front of her then stood and leaned over aforementioned seat. "Do you know what Nakamori-keibu's talking with them about? Obviously the heist, but I mean, do you have specifics?"

"I think he's requesting no one except airplane personnel enter the First Class," Hakuba answered, gazing at Kasuma. "And he'll probably go on to suggest that none of the First Class passengers leave this area."

"How 'r' we s'pposed ta protect da jewel if we don't kno' where it is?" Hattori mumbled from his seat, scanning the airplane cabin.

"We can't," Kasuma stated bluntly, turning to look at Hattori. "Simple as that. The owner probably doesn't trust us. Especially since KID and Mage can disguise as any one of us."

"I'm sorry, but we'll have to confiscate this," Nakamori's voice rang out from the back of the cabin. The group of detectives looked behind themselves, spotting Nakamori extending a hand towards the music player in one of the passengers' laps. The passenger in question had pale skin and light brown hair. He was wearing loose fitting jeans and a green polo, white headphones in his ears. He tugged off the headphones.

"Eh? Why?"

Nakamori revealed his police badge, "There are criminals on board and in order to cut off any form of contact, we have to confiscate any electronic devices." Nakamori glanced at the sleeping figure next to the man. "Do you know if your neighbor has anything of the kind?"

"Who, Kendal?" The man looked at his companion. "She never carries anything electronic on her person. They should all be in her bag in the carry-on compartment," he answered, pointing above him to said compartment.

Raising an inquisitive eyebrow, Kasuma slipped past Hattori and walked towards the couple. "Uh… By chance, were you studying abroad in Japan?"

The man looked shocked at first, then shrugged and replied with, "Yeah. I'm majoring in Japanese and in order to better understand the language, I decided to take my school's program for studying in Japan for a term."

"What college do you attend?" Kasuma asked. "Maybe I've heard of it. I've been thinking of studying abroad myself."

"UCSB," the man answered after some time.

Nakamori coughed to grab the college student's attention, "_Any_way. Can you please hand over any electronics of any kind? I assure you, you _will _receive them when we reach Seattle."

"Fine," the student replied. "Don't wanna be seen as suspicious." He dug through his bag and extracted a mini laptop and a cell phone, handing them to Nakamori along with the music player.

* * *

One hour had passed and the plane had long since taken off, electronic devices stored together in a locked cabinet near the cockpit. After the plane took to the air, Nakamori and the Task Force officers had left their seats in order to further interview the other five First Class passengers. The passengers, under the impression that they were being interviewed due to non-violent criminals being on board the plane, submitted to the questioning. "Here," Nakamori stated bluntly as he extended a single sheet of paper behind him where Conan, Kasuma, and Hattori were seated.

"What is this?" Kasuma asked, taking the paper.

"A profile of all the passengers in First Class based off our interviews," Nakamori explained, keeping his voice relatively low. "Names, careers, hometowns, et cetera." Hattori and Conan leaned in to read the information on the paper.

"Sam Anderson and Kendal Imamura," Conan read off quietly. "They both attend UCSB and are dating. Sam grew up in New York City and decided to major in Japanese. Kendal is an American-born Japanese who is majoring in biology. To help Sam learn the language and maneuver the country, she tagged along and continued her classes online while in Japan. They're on this flight in order to get back to California and have a connection they need to catch at the Sea-Tac Airport."

"Den we have Hashimoto Isao 'n' Hashimoto Minako, a married couple," Hattori read on. "Dey're visitin' relatives in America 'n' also have ta transfer planes. Isao-han works as an engineer and Minako-han is a veterinarian."

"Fujiwara Katashi is a soccer coach and decided to vacation outside the country. Outside of the soccer season, Fujiwara-san holds a job as a personal trainer at a local gym… I guess that explains the muscles," Kasuma looked up and to her left at a tan, muscular man in blue jeans and a black shirt, "Considering soccer players don't use much of their upper body. Let's see… Then there's Yunokawa Aika, a very successful CEO in Japan. Her reason for flying to Seattle is a business meeting she has to attend. With all that lavish attire she has on, she _could_ be the jewel owner but…"

"Would someone trying to hide their jewel deck themselves in such expensive clothing?" Conan finished. "It could be a case of reverse psychology, but we can't be certain."

"'N' finally, we got Sugihara Kohaku, a business man," Hattori murmured. "Sugihara-han says he's visitin' his sick mother who was sent ta a hospital in America fer better treatm'nt, which explains why he's all nervous." Hattori looked to his right at said man sitting across the aisle from Conan.

"Now all that's left is to narrow down the suspects," Conan mumbled. "Two of these people are KID and Mage and one person is the jewel owner."

* * *

From his vantage point near the back of the First Class Cabin, he was able to keep a close eye on the police officers, detectives, and other passengers on the plane. The perfect spot to search for his target. Sure, it would be harder considering the circumstances, but that's what makes it fun, ne? This perfect spot was skillfully picked out by his partner and he always wondered how much influence his partner really had. No wonder her job looked so… easy maybe? 'I wonder how many strings she pulled to get this seat.'

He took one short glance at his 'companion' in the neighboring seat. It only reminded him of how much fun it was to use dummies in this career. Granted, he usually blew them up but they were still useful. Their state at the end of the day, or night in most cases, didn't change that fact. He let out a large yawn, slapping a hand over his mouth to hide the action as much as possible. 'How does she get through these things? All this moving around is tiring… and she said she usually packs in more targets. We've got twelve this week so how many does she usually hit? I'm gonna need lots of shut eye after this. Good thing we've got the next heist after this planned. Arg,' he shook his head vigorously, 'I have to focus on this target. No getting sidetracked. She's pitchin' in on her end, now I have to do the same.' He scanned the passengers again, 'Okay, I can rule out the four Task Force members, including Nakamori-keibu, and the Tanteis are out as well, so all that's left are the two in the back, the lady up front, the body-builder who's not really a body-builder across from her, and the nervous business man across the aisle from Tantei-kun. I guess I should also be glad there aren't as many people in First Class… so much easier to work like this. I wonder if that was sheer luck.. not that I'm complaining. Hm, it's too bad Nakamori-keibu got rid of any electronic devices. So much for communicating with Mage.

'Alright, the couple across from me have two carry-ons, a purse and what looks like a laptop case… but why use the computer up here? Anyway, the lady in the front of the middle section seems to come from a rich family, if the expensive clothing and excessive jewelry say anything. The not body-builder in front of my row only brought a small piece of luggage up as a carry-on. It's possible to hide a gem in there but it would be hard to access both by the owner and thieves like us. And there doesn't seem to be any place on his person where he could successfully hid a large gem such as our current target. With the rich lady it's possible but she probably wouldn't want to display the target in such a spot where we could easily see and identify it. She'd assume we've done our homework and know what it looks like. It could be hidden in a pocket of that Coach bag or maybe in a pocket of the jacket she's wearing, preferably a sealed pocket… maybe a pocket on the inside or simply one with a zipper. That business man's briefcase could certainly be a good hiding place and it's easily accessible but then again, so are the purses the ladies have. That suit, of course, has a few pockets that could be used but someone could easily pickpocket any of them if given the chance. He probably wouldn't put many valuable items in those pockets.' KID rubbed his forehead, 'This is why I don't like detective work. If only I could listen in on one of those detectives… like Tantei-kun or Tantei-san... heck even Tantei-han or Tantei-chan would be helpful right about now. They're probably chattin' it up right now while I've got to figure this out practically solo. I want that listening device even more now.' A coin was pulled out of thin air and nimble hands twirled it around, across the palm, over the back of the hand, up into the air, et cetera. The shiny coin danced across the experienced hand while KID mulled over the current problem. 'The gem owner's in disguise… No one, not even Nakamori-keibu, knows who it is… Mage and I have got thirteen hours to find this gem before the plane lands and the owner escapes through the hustle and bustle of the Seattle airport. I wonder if I can get the disguised owner to somehow fess up... make them slip, catch a little slip of the tongue. Can I do that with minimal conversation? A detective would have better luck in getting them to talk and I'm not disguising as a detective. If I gently nudge any of the detectives, they'll catch on and have me in cuffs in a matter of seconds. Not the goal I'm looking for.' Another yawn broke through. 'Damn, and what's worse, I _need_ some sleep! Not gonna be able to focus like this.'

"If you're tired, you should rest. Your 'friend' seems to like that idea." A head nodded to the 'sleeping' dummy.

KID craned his neck to glance at the figure who was staring at bathroom door which currently read 'Occupied,' "…Mage?" he ventured.

"Yup," Mage smiled, tearing her gaze from the door to look at KID briefly. "I'll be fine… Get some rest while you can. I can wake you up when I figure out who the owner is. Unless," she watched KID carefully, "You want me to do the honors."

KID shrugged, diverting his gaze and letting it fall on the back of the seat in front of him. "A few hours would be fine. Four to five maybe…" he smirked, "Less if you happen to find the owner that fast."

It was Mage's turn to shrug. Eyes now on the bathroom door again she replied, "Who knows? So… that okay with you? Five hours then I'll wake you up? Sooner if, and only if, I figure out the owner's identity. Deal?"

"Deal," The red bar on the door switched to green and Mage slipped quietly into the enclosure. KID reclined his chair and settled in for a short nap.

* * *

"Okay, so here's a picture of the jewel, Szalik," Kasuma said, showing Conan and Hattori a photo on her phone.

Szalik wasn't like the other jewels KID and Mage had targeted during this WLH. It wasn't even a single jewel. Szalik was a necklace adorning a slate blue Cat's Eye gemstone. Climbing up the silver chain on either side of the Cat's Eye were smaller Moissanite gems, a pale green sheen cast off all the jewels. "The combined weight of the necklace totals four hundred fifty-three grams or two thousand two hundred sixty-seven carats," Kasuma explained. "Not exactly an easy thing to conceal."

"'N' it's somew'ere on dis plane," Hattori muttered.

Kasuma sighed and closed her phone, supporting her head with her right arm. "Ne," she whispered, nudging Conan's arm with the eraser end of her pencil, which had been resting in her lap. "I've got a question… A very off-topic question."

"…What…?" Conan whispered back, quirking an eyebrow.

"If you got an antidote and returned to your body for good, what would you tell Ran-san first?"

Conan jerked back, shocked. A huge blush spread across his face. "W-why do you want to know?"

Kasuma shrugged, "Simply curious."

"Uh… well," Conan fumbled for words. "I-I guess I would tell her I'm sorry and I… love her." As he finished his sentence, Conan kept his face down, hiding his blush as best as he could.

"Ne, why 'r' ya whisperin'? Have ya figured somethin' out?" Hattori asked just then, leaning over in his seat.

"No, no! It's nothing!" Kasuma responded, waving her hands in front of her face with a smile.

"Any luck, Kasuma?" Hakuba's voice came from the row in front of them.

Kasuma stood and leaned over the seat in front of her, glancing to her right at Hakuba, "None at all. It's at the point where everyone starts to seem suspicious."

"Well then, we're in the same boat," Nakamori gritted out, a frown etched on his face. "Damn it! We can't do_ anything_ like this… and we can't just _let_ KID and Mage take the jewel!"

"There's _got_ to be a way to narrow down the list," Conan mumbled from behind Kasuma, hand around his chin, thinking.

* * *

"Kusou," Hattori cursed. "We ain't gettin' _anywhere_ wit' dis!" Hattori rubbed his temples with the fingers of his right hand. About another two or so hours had passed and the detectives and officers were still nowhere near narrowing down the list of suspects.

"Shh," Kasuma hushed the dark-skinned teen, "Keep your voice down, Conan-kun's sleeping." Conan was curled up in his seat, one arm pressed against his chest, the other hanging limply off the seat. Hair mussed and glasses askew, the boy's steady breath hitched as he shivered from the cool air blowing through the vent in the plane's ceiling. "Poor guy… the heist wiped him out. Uh, excuse me," Kasuma caught the attention of one of the flight attendants. "Can I please have a blanket?"

The flight attendant nodded, giving a small smile, "Right away, Okyaku-san." The attendant left only to return a few minutes later. She handed Kasuma a folded dark green blanket then departed after bowing. Silently, Kasuma unfolded the blanket and carefully draped it over Conan's small frame, taking care not to wake the teenager-turned-child.

"So," Hattori began when Kasuma finished, voice low, "How do we go 'bout dis?"

"Beats me," Kasuma murmured. "The interviews hardly tell us anything useful and it'd be rude to simply walk up to one of them and scrutinize them. Honestly, it might be easier to let it go and see what happens, but that means leaving it in the hands of the thieves and that's not what we want."

"Well, maybe we c'n t'ink o' possible hidin' locations 'n' go from there?" Hattori suggested.

"Hmm… Well, if _I _were the owner and I was trying to protect something like that from world-famous thieves, I'd want the target close to me but not in such a location that would reveal the target."

"Like a pock't… or a bag…" Hattori listed.

"Sometimes, if I'm wearing boots, I slip items in there," Kasuma said, shrugging. "But with a jewel like Szalik, it'd be impossible to do that… not to mention _horribly_ uncomfortable."

"'N' it's not like we coulda searched all da carry-on bags," Hattori mumbled, running an agitated hand through his hair.

"And from what we _could_ see when the passengers collected their electronics, there were no such Szalik-like items… unless they've hidden it _that_ well." Kasuma leaned forward, resting her head against the back of the seat in front of her. "Kusou," she muttered softly, "We don't have enough clues to discern Szalik's location. If only we had _those_!"

* * *

The sound of one of the bathroom doors sliding open jolted KID from his slumber. Rubbing his eyes, careful not to mess up his mask, KID groggily read the time on his watch. 'What? I've only been asleep for two and a half hours? Geez… Well at least I'm a _little_ more awake.' KID noticed—a little _too_ slowly for his liking—that there was some sort of weight on him. Looking down, KID saw the rectangular box that was sitting oh so innocently on his lap, covered in an innocent-looking blue fabric. On top of the box was a note written in French. "Il s'agit d'un faux. Utilisez-le pour mettre au clair le propriétaire," KID read quietly, so as not to alert anyone near him. KID grinned. 'Is_ this _your plan, Mage?' Looking around to make sure no one was watching, KID slowly notched the lid of the box open slightly, peering inside. Just as he thought, a well-made replica of the target Szalik was sitting quietly inside. Taking a handkerchief and covering the fake then picking it up, KID dropped it carefully on the ground. Standing up, stretching and yawing, KID made for the restroom slowly, subtly kicking the jewel along with him. With his back facing the rest of the cabin, KID let a grin slip out and with more force, kicked the fake jewel behind him, still making his way to the restroom. As he scanned the doors in front of him, out of the corner of his eye he could see Hattori bending over his seat and picking up the fake jewel.

"'Ey… isn't dis…?"

"Szalik?" Kasuma finished. KID quickly hid a smirk, sliding the bathroom door open and walking inside, leaving it open a sliver so he could peek through and watch the action. The reaction of one particular passenger caught KID's attention.

"Kyaaa! Thieves! They stole Szalik!"

The lavishly dressed woman leapt out of her seat, frantically searching her person. The other passengers looked on, confused, murmuring comments of 'What the hell is going on here?' or 'Thieves? Aboard this plane?'

KID shut the door completely, smirking. 'You got it already, didn't you Mage? Now we just have to avoid getting caught for the rest of the flight.'

* * *

Seattle, Washington  
Sea-Tac International Airport  
November 21, 9:30 PM

The people bustling about the airport made it seem like there were far more people than there really were as the Task Force officers and detectives stepped off the plane. Nakamori and the three other officers dropped their stuff next to a couple of black chairs before walking over to Yunokawa Aika, KID and Mage's 'victim,' so to speak. Meanwhile, "He still not awake?" Hattori asked as he looked behind him.

Kasuma shook her head, duffle bag slung across her back. In her arms, she was carrying a still sleeping Conan, his small backpack draped over her arm. "He slept through the entire heist and the 'thief searching' after that. He must be really tired if we haven't been able to wake him up."

"Understandably," Hakuba murmured. "Children _need_ more sleep but Conan-kun insisted on staying awake in order to help us. I believe the only _real_ sleep he received was back in Tokyo."

"Well, let's head to the gate," Kasuma said, placing a hand gently on the back of Conan's head. Nakamori and the other Task Force officers were already heading towards the gate, thanks to Aika who had pointed them in the right direction. Hakuba ran forward in order to further assist the Inspector maneuver the foreign airport.

"W'at do we kno' 'bout da Seattle targets?" Hattori asked.

"Only that there's a possible target at the Seattle Art Museum," Kasuma responded. "Amunet, Crystal, and Rianna didn't tell me anything other than that. Don't worry," Kasuma added after a while. "They'll inform us when we meet up."

"Kasuma neun jangnan kku leo gi ya!" an unfamiliar voice yelled above the noise of the airport.

Kasuma's head jerked to the speaker, Hattori staring with a flabbergasted look on his face. "Dag chyeo, aldasipi sasil-i aniya!" Kasuma yelled back.

A teenager with black hair and auburn highlights waved before running up and giving Kasuma a side-hug, avoiding Conan who had just started rousing. **"You know I'm kidding, Kasuma~!"**

Another teenager, tanner than the first, excitedly bounded over, speaking in a very rapid foreign tongue. Kasuma set Conan on his own two feet and straightened. **"I only caught half of that, can you say that again?"**

"**Hi! It's been so much more boring without you; you need to tell us **_**everything**_** that happened after you left; and I'm gonna **_**kill **_**you for calling me that late! I was **_**just about to go to sleep!"**_ The teenager, who was wearing a purple shirt, black cargo pants, and had fiery red hair, translated.

"**Kasuma, hi!"** a third teenager exclaimed, bringing Kasuma into a hug. **"Hi Saguru! Figured you'd be here."**

"**In fact, we **_**all**_** figured you'd be here,"** the teen with red hair grinned.

"**Hello Julia, Crystal, Rianna,"** Hakuba replied. **"It's been a while."**

"**It sure has,"** the brown haired teen with red streaks in her hair replied.

"Hattori-kun, Conan-kun," Kasuma began. "These are my American friends. Julia, or Amunet, Taylor," she gestured towards the teen with red hair, "Crystal Storm," she pointed at the black-haired girl, "and Rianna White," she moved her hand towards the girl with brown hair. **"And guys, these two are Hattori Heiji and Edogawa Conan."**

"Uh, shouldn't you switch the order around?" Conan asked.

"It's okay," Kasuma reassured. "They know what I mean since they've all gotten used to Japanese because of me… In fact, they know exactly what we're saying, ne?" Kasuma tilted her head towards the three teenagers.

"**With Kasuma around, you pick up Japanese really easily,"** Amunet said, shrugging. **"We all understand it but aren't the best speakers of it."**

"_**Any**_**way… Let's get down to business,"** Kasuma said, switching topics.

"**To defeat the Huns?"** Rianna asked with a huge grin.

Kasuma cast her a deadpan look, **"You **_**know**_** that's not what I meant."**

"**I would ask 'do we have to' but I know how you'll respond so… here,"** Amunet extracted a small piece of paper and handed it to Kasuma.** "The jewels we think those two are after."**

Kasuma grabbed the paper and read the contents, writing down a translation as she went. "Nakamori-keibu!" Kasuma exclaimed, calling the inspector over. "Take a look at this."

**Final Notes: Wow… twenty chapters… this is by far the longest story I've written without me giving up halfway through its production. I'm very happy about that.  
****When I imagine Conan curled up in his seat, sound asleep, I can't help but squeal at the cuteness of it. Don't you agree? :D**

**Translation  
****French  
****Il s'agit d'un faux. ****Utilisez-le pour mettre au clair le propriétaire. **(This is a fake. Use it to smoke out the owner.)

**Korean  
****Kasuma neun jangnan kku leo gi ya! **(Kasuma has been naughty!)  
**Dag chyeo, aldasipi sasil-i aniya!** (Shut up, you know that's not true!)

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "**__**Call 911 and send an ambulance to Four Seasons Hotel by the SAM."**_


	26. Extra: Beginnings

**A/N: Hello again! Just like I did with the previous Extra, this is from one of the chapters to come and definitely will be showing up again. My reasoning for uploading this early is the same as well... I didn't want to leave you all hanging for too long. And since I'm 10 chapters already written and completed, I decided to give you something while Cai-chan continues to work on chapter 21 (damnyoulife).  
Just as another note, this snippet is completely RAW meaning not even Cai-chan has seen this so if there are errors, then I'm terribly sorry. Hopefully you can work around any mistakes that may be present and figure out what I really meant.**

**Extra START! **

* * *

Extra: Beginnings

* * *

-~-18 Years Ago… (March)-~-

At first glance, the mansion looked very ordinary. Walking in, one may marvel at the elaborate paintings or the ornate furniture, the beautifully polished spiral staircase. On one side of the entranceway were photographs of a crew of men—and women—crowding around brand new automobiles, smiles on all their faces, proud of their finished project. However, if one were to look carefully, they may stumble across one of many hidden switches which opens a secret passage way. Masuyama Kenzou, the owner of said mansion, walked down one of the aforementioned passage ways. Reaching the bottom of the steps, there came into view a hidden laboratory, a computer in the center of the room. A figure was sitting in a rolling chair in front of the computer, a soft, constant, tapping originating from the keyboard. Her brown hair never passed her shoulders and her brown eyes were focused on the screen in front of her. "Hiromi-chan, why are you down here?"

"Well, _someone _needs to be working on the Project. The higher-ups are frustrated with the little progress we've made on the Project," Takashi Hiromi answered, typing away on the computer.

"Where's Kouichi-kun?" Kenzou asked next, walking up to her and standing directly behind the chair.

"Buying some much needed supplies," Hiromi replied, laying a hand on her enlarged stomach, smiling as she felt the being inside kick.

"Ah, yes. You _are_ due sometime soon, aren't you?"

"Yes. A few weeks in fact."

"Then all the more reason you shouldn't be working. You could go into labor any day now." Kenzou picked up a folder sitting next to the computer and skimmed through it. "What about asking Akvavit and Cachaca?"

"That wouldn't do," Hiromi shook her head. "Elena-chan's pretty far along as well. Maybe in another month or so."

Kenzou also shook his head. "I'm _still_ surprised at Anokata's _continued_ ignorance of this whole situation. What if someone… were to reveal your true state. The child would never be safe."

"By 'someone'… you mean Vermouth, right?"

Kenzou sighed, "You just can't always trust her. She could suddenly decide to tell Anokata about the child. She wouldn't be safe."

"No worries there, Kenzou-san," Hiromi reassured. "Vermouth has stayed quiet about my pregnancy."

"Speaking of Vermouth and her quiet tendencies… It seems she's gone and killed another Organization member," Kenzou murmured. "Someone from Waykamatayan again."

Hiromi sighed. "That'll be her what? Third one?" Shaking her head, Hiromi turned back to the computer and continued working.

**Final Notes: Well, that's the end of that short lil segment (can't believe I was able to write a SHORT prose... normally that's impossible for me)  
****Now a certain authoress has research notes for English to do (sometimes I hate writing).**


	27. Day Seven (21)

**A/N: Part fifteen of the Pandora Arc! Phew! The WLH ends here but there's still more to come…  
****Ahh! Life got in the way again! (Curse you schoolwork) I was hoping to start a weekly-ish schedule but that didn't work out for this chapter —_—' As what happened to Cai-chan earlier in the year, I went onto my school retreat and then there was the work piling on after that (stupid research paper… why can't we start the short story unit in this quarter?) Anyway… enough of my life (anditsmanyfaliures) and onto the story!  
****Warnings: Near drowning.  
****Acknowledgments: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): For some reason, my computer likes to randomly screw up my Word documents. I'm **_**sooo**_** glad I had what I had written down of this chapter somewhere else. (However, I can't say the same thing about a section of a later arc of this story…)**

**Today's quote is: "Uh oh, just don't throw him in a lake."—Iocus**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Day Seven

* * *

Seattle, Washington  
Cristalla Condominiums  
November 22, 7:18 AM

Yawning, Kasuma walked into the kitchen to see the three friends she hadn't seen in months propped up in chairs. **"How many cups of coffee have you guys had?"**

Stretching, Crystal was the first to answer, **"I just woke up so this is my first. Judging from the current level in the coffee maker, I'd say there were at **_**least**_** five cups prior to my waking."**

"**More than that, Crystal,"** Amunet answered, still not fully alert. **"We went through an entire carafe before you woke up. Kasuma… you are **_**sooo**_** lucky you don't have to deal with the homework load anymore."**

"**Yeah, reading those old-style American novels can get so confusing,"** Rianna continued.

"**Hmm… Oh,"** Kasuma looked around the condo, **"Where's Nakamori-keibu?"**

"**He called a cab and headed over to one of the museums with Saguru… even though none of the targeted museums are open,"** Crystal explained.

Kasuma sighed, rubbing her temples, **"Figures… at least the idea of bring Hak—Saguru crossed his mind. But what can they do? With the time zone jump, we don't know the exact time KID and Mage were specifying. It could be the equivalent time or something else entirely."**

"**Oh, about that,"** Rianna cut in. **"Julia used her father's contacts and found out that ****Fáinne ****Grá** **will only be at Bellevue Arts Museum today. They don't even put it on display until opening. Until that time, it's in the hands of the owner."**

"**We relayed that little tidbit to Saguru so I'm sure he realizes the only chance KID and Mage'll get is tonight,"** Amunet finished.

"**Does Nakamori-keibu realize that he doesn't have much authority here in America? How will he get the museum's cooperation?"** Kasuma asked.

"**That's where **_**you**_** come in, dear,"** Amunet replied with a smile. **"Every time you come across a case, you help out in some way… I can't even **_**remember **_**all the times you've assisted up here. You have contact with the Seattle police."**

"**Oh… right… forgot about that,"** Kasuma murmured.

"What's going on here?" Conan asked around a large yawn.

"**I was just telling Kasuma about the time I told some **_**really**_** rude guy off in Arabic,"** Amunet answered smoothly.

Kasuma jerked her head over to Amunet. **"What? You so did **_**not!**_** And when was this?"**

"**On the MAX,"** Amunet replied with a shrug. **"He ticked me off, for Ra's sake! Just be glad that's **_**all**_** I did."**

Kasuma sighed, letting her head fall into her hands, **"You know, you'll be in jail someday."**

"**Hey now, you'll be in the cell next to me,"** Amunet retorted, matter-of-factly.

"**Yeah, that's probably true,"** Kasuma said with a grin, **"Anywho… back on topic. We were **_**really**_** talking about the heist. Saguru already left with Nakamori-keibu and the other officers… they're going to one of the museums but not sure which."**

"**W'aat? Ev'ryone's up now?" **Hattori asked as he walked into the spacious main room, stretching his arms above his head.

"**Uhhh,"** Conan began timidly. **"C-can I have some coffee?"**

Crystal quirked a curious eyebrow, casting a look towards Kasuma who nodded subtly before saying, in a foreign tongue, "Está bien, ha bebido algunos antes." Nodding, Crystal slid off her chair and walked over to a cabinet above the stove, opening it and grabbing a ceramic mug. Filling the mug three fourths of the way, Crystal passed the cup of steaming liquid to the seven-year old who took it with a small 'thank you.'

"**So, Kasuma, what are you gonna do in the meantime? The museums don't open until around ten,"** Rianna asked. **"You've got a few hours to kill."**

"**Saguru won't loosen up until this heist is over so I might as well contact Inspector Powell and have him meet up with Saguru and the Task Force officers. Then, they'll at least have more access to the museums,"** Kasuma said, shrugging. **"In the meantime, I suppose I could get Hattori-kun and Conan-kun more acquainted with the city… and the SAM's a two minute drive away. Even though it's not open yet, we could walk around the area…"** Kasuma trailed off, staring at her watch. **"Are you three gonna tag along?"** Kasuma asked her friends.

"**Weeeell…"** Rianna began. **"In all honesty we should be doing homework but I think I speak for everyone when I say, we don't feel like doing **_**any**_** of it."**

"**Typical,"** Kasuma huffed, grinning. **"Should have expected that answer. 'Carpe some diem… cras,' ne Crystal?"**

A grin broke across Crystal's face, **"You never got that T-shirt, did you? Since you left before we finalized that order."**

Kasuma shrugged. **"Anyway… shall we get going?... You guys aren't gonna do anything strange are you?"**

"**Of course not!"** Rianna reassured. The three females exchanged looks then burst out laughing.

"**I was wondering what kind of people would hang out with you. Now I know… hyper, excited girls like you,"** Conan mumbled, looking up at Kasuma who had her face in her hand, shaking her head slowly.

* * *

Seattle, Washington  
Seattle Art Museum  
November 22, 7:29 AM

"—**And **_**right**_** after Rogo did that, **_**Pat Barr**_** walked in! We never noticed her until Rogo froze and everyone started cracking up when we did,"** Crystal said, suppressing a laugh. The group of teenagers—shrunken one included—was standing outside the Seattle Art Museum, where Crystal was telling Kasuma a story from her Latin class. Amunet and Rianna, having heard the story before, had pulled Hattori and Conan several feet away, pointing out buildings surrounding the museum in order to save the boys from the embarrassment that would surely come should they have overheard the retelling.

Conan's gaze, which was once on the Benaroya Hall Amunet had pointed to, was now focused on something—or someone—else coming from the direction of the hall. "Ne, isn't that Kaito-niichan?"

Kasuma's head snapped towards Conan, then swiveled to focus on the object of Conan's attention. **"Is that you, Kaito Kuroba?"** Kasuma yelled, hands cupped around her mouth, startling Crystal and the surrounding pedestrians with her volume. As if in response, a cloud of smoke appeared seconds after Kasuma's exclamation.

"**Kasuma-chan? What are you doing here?"** Kaito asked in flawless English.

"**KID and Mage have a heist here… what are **_**you**_** doing here? Weren't you meeting KHA? Wasn't his last show somewhere in the Midwest?"** Kasuma noticed another figure standing next to Kaito, a grey beret sitting atop a head of dark hair. **"…Is that…?" **Kasuma motioned to the figure behind the teenage magician.

"**KHA? Yeah,"** Kaito stated, rotating his body so he was also facing the famous magician. KHA lifted his head and smiled gently, brown eyes examining Kasuma. After a moment, they widened.

"**I recognize you…"** the magician began. **"You were my audience assistant during one of my Portland shows. The only Japanese audience member during that particular show."**

"**Kasuma-neechan, what did being Japanese have to do with the magic show?"** Conan asked the teenager, bounding over to her with Hattori following curiously.

"**He gave a riddle that could only be answered if one had enough knowledge of Japanese language and culture. The person who gave the correct answer would then be the assistant for his next trick,"** Kasuma explained.

"So ya kno' Japanese?" Hattori asked.

KHA looked over at the dark-skinned detective. "I do. I was born in Japan, after all."

"Why are you in Seattle, oji-san? Is there a show here?" Conan asked cheerfully.

"Not this week but the next," KHA answered. With a puff of smoke, the world-famous magician produced a miniature flag of Japan. "I decided to come here early, and in the meantime, since Kaito-kun was accompanying me, I thought I'd show him the venue and teach him some of my larger-scale tricks."

"**Kasuma…"** Amunet walked up to Kasuma and whispered something in her ear.

"**Eh?"** Kasuma looked around the sidewalk before something caught her eye and she waved. **"Saguru! Over here!"**

"**Ah, Kasuma, you're up,"** Hakuba murmured, walking up to the gathered group, Nakamori and the Task Force officers following. **"And it seems Kuroba found his way here too,"** Hakuba glared at said teen and Kaito shrank back, hands hiding behind his head.

"**Well, we haven't had anything to eat for breakfast so we'll be going,"** KHA said, raising a hand in farewell. Kaito grinned at the gathered teenagers and officers then turned and ran after the other magician.

"Kasuma, who was that?" Hakuba asked, motioning to Kaito's companion.

"A famous magician called KHA. Apparently he and Kaito's father were friends in college, I believe it was. Kaito wanted to meet him and therefore tracked him down," Kasuma responded, shrugging.

"What's his _real_ name? KHA's, I mean," Hakuba asked next.

"I don't know," Kasuma raised her hands in a shrug, "He hasn't released that to the public. Everyone knows him as KHA, nothing else."

"**Kasuma, didn't you call Inspector Powell?"** Rianna asked, grabbing the girl's attention. **"When did he say he'd get here?"**

"**He said about seven forty-five and it's…"**

"**Seven forty-four and nineteen point twenty-three seconds,"** Hakuba answered, looking at his pocket watch.

"**Gotta **_**love**_** precision, right Kasuma?"** Amunet asked with a grin, nudging the teen's arm.

Kasuma shrugged her off, moving instead towards the edge of the sidewalk where a silver car had just pulled up.** "Long time, no see, Inspector Powell,"** Kasuma greeted the figure stepping out of the driver's seat.

"**That's for sure,"** the man murmured, wrapping his tan trench coat around his slim form. The inspector had short black hair and green eyes and gave off an aura of confidence. **"Last time I ran into you was when you happened to be one of the witnesses of a murder. Who were the others with you at that time?"**

"**Of course, it **_**had**_** to have been Saguru,"** Amunet answered, shoving the British detective forward. **"You two solved that thing in a flash."**

"**That you did,"** Powell agreed with a chuckle. **"Anyway… let's get to the point. I've already sent men to the Bellevue Arts Museum and although they agreed to let the officers and any others working to protect** **Fáinne****Grá on display there, they refuse to close the museum. We'll probably get a similar answer from the SAM but at least we'll have some control about the security system for tonight."**

After Hakuba had finished translating Powell's statement to Nakamori, he turned to the Seattle inspector, **"Then shall we talk with the SAM?"**

* * *

Bellevue, Washington  
Bellevue Arts Museum  
November 22, 11:51 PM

"I'm kinda glad dis'll be ov'r soon," Hattori sighed, stretching his arms above his head. "How 'bout ya, Kudo?"

"Guess so," Conan shrugged. "All the moving around _does_ get to you after a while. It's a shame we couldn't keep an eye on KID and Mage in between heists."

"'N' w'en we _did_ have an eye on dem, dey escaped in a puff o' smoke," Hattori murmured, rotating his shoulders.

"They were able to stay completely off our radar," Conan mumbled. "I guess that's something Mage picked up during the previous WLHs." Conan jumped slightly when a vibration in his pocket startled him.

"W'at's wrong?" Hattori asked.

Conan pulled out his phone and flipped it open, "It's Kasuma-chan." Conan raised his phone to his ear, "…Moshi moshi?"

"How are things on your end? No sign of the thieves?"

"No, everything's quiet right now," Conan answered, sweeping his eyes around the museum. "Ne, are your friends at the museum over there?"

"No," Kasuma stated bluntly. "Nakamori-keibu practically kicked those three out. However, they're probably in the vicinity of either museum, knowing them. Mage grew on them… they're not as bad as Sonoko but they're pretty close."

"Great," Conan muttered sarcastically, "_More_ thief fan-girls." Kasuma's reply was cut off by a string of coughs. "Kasuma-chan?"

"Shimatta, active thief over here. Tear gas—" Kasuma was once again cut off by several coughs. "Gotta go." Seconds after Kasuma hung up, the exhibition room was filled with a familiar pink smoke. KID's laugh filled the room.

"**Hello everyone! Please excuse my English… I haven't used it in a while,"** KID's voice rang out in clear, slightly accented English. **"I'll be fairly brief,"** KID lifted his left wrist and looked at a watch that wasn't there. **"My doves need to be fed… They'll be cranky if I don't get to that soon."**

"**No!" **Hattori exclaimed. **"Don't you dare!"**

Waving at the Osakan detective, KID grinned and released several smoke bombs. When the smoke cleared, Fáinne Grá had disappeared along with the thief. "Kusou!" Nakamori growled. "Hurry and give chase!"

"**Give chase!"** Hattori exclaimed, translating Nakamori's order.

* * *

Seattle Art Museum

"Shimatta, active thief over here. Tear gas—" Kasuma couldn't stop another series of coughs as the gas spread around the room. "Gotta go." Kasuma closed her phone and covered her mouth and nose with the sleeve of her jacket.** "Why the hell is there tear gas in here?"**

"**Hey! Someone open a window or something!"** Inspector Powell exclaimed, voice muffled from his sleeve.

"**Sagu—"** Kasuma stopped. 'Where'd he go? He was right next to me a moment ago.' After a few more seconds, the gas scattered, clearing the room and revealing Mage atop the jewel case of Spirale Anello, the target resting at the SAM.

"**What fine weather we have right now,"** Mage purred. **"A little chilly but that's to be expected in the Northwest during November."** In a puff of smoke, Mage had Spirale Anello in her hand. **"Now I won't detain you any further as I'm sure you all wish to obtain some much needed rest. With that said, see ya!"** There was another puff of smoke and when it cleared, Mage was nowhere to be seen. But neither was Kasuma.

Running up the staircase closest to the exhibition room, Kasuma caught a brief glimpse of a white cape and pressed onward. The quiet _clack _of a door informed Kasuma of Mage's current location. The door to the roof of the Seattle Art Museum flew open and Kasuma skidded to a stop, gazing at the thief in front of her. Mage was facing her, white cape pulled out in front of the thief's figure. "Gotcha," Kasuma mumbled.

Mage didn't say anything for a while, her eyes—purple, currently—scanning the rooftop. "Ne, Tantei-chan… where's Holmes?"

Kasuma jerked her head behind her, then back to Mage. "…He… wasn't behind you?"

"I'm afraid not," Mage replied in her neutralized voice.

"I… haven't… seen him," Kasuma gradually trailed off, cursing at the end. Kasuma flicked out her cell phone and hit Hakuba's designated speed dial, bringing the phone up to her ear. Meanwhile, Mage was quietly relaying something to an earpiece hidden behind her short, dirty-blonde wig. Kasuma brought the phone down from her ear, glancing at Mage. "Sorry Mage, but Hakuba comes first. I'm looking for him." Kasuma immediately turned towards the stairs, but was stopped by a familiar voice.

"I found Tantei-san!" KID's hang glider flew overhead, "Mage, he's closest to you… Four Seasons Hotel. In the outdoor pool. There's nowhere near there where I can safely land so I can't help him."

"**Damn it!"** Kasuma cursed, bolting down the stairs. "I _knew_ something bad would happen today." As she ran, she opened her cell phone again, inputting another number. **"Inspector Powell, there's no time to explain. Call 911 and send an ambulance to Four Seasons Hotel by the SAM."**

"**I-I got it. I'll send one over. And I'll bring some of my men,"** Inspector Powell replied.

"**Please do,"** Kasuma answered, hanging up and throwing open the door to the museum. 'If I recall… the hotel is to the right of the main entrance.' Inspector Powell exited the museum a minute or so after Kasuma.

"**Kasuma. What's wrong?"**

Kasuma turned to her right and continued running, the Inspector and three of his men following closely behind.** "KID saw Ha—I mean Saguru in the outdoor pool of the Four Seasons Hotel."**

"'**KID' as in Kaitou KID?"**

"**Yeah. I guess he saw him as he was escaping and he flew by Mage and I to inform us."** Kasuma reached the intersection and turned left, crossing the street. **"Thank God there aren't as many cars out at midnight." **Kasuma ran through the doors of the hotel and headed straight for the reception desk. **"Where's the outdoor pool?"** Kasuma asked the woman behind the desk.

"**Over there,"** the woman answered, pointing slightly behind her.

"**How deep?"**

"**Four feet."**

"**Thank you so much."** Kasuma darted past the desk and through the doors that led to the outdoor pool. Shrugging off her jacket and throwing her phone and other smaller items on top of it, Kasuma wasted no time and dove into the pool at a low angle. By the time Inspector Powell and his men, along with the hotel manager and the lady at the reception desk, made it to the pool, Kasuma had surfaced, throwing her set of lock picks onto the rough cement. **"Inspector Powell, help me get him out,"** Kasuma nodded her head towards Hakuba, whom she was grasping around the waist. The Inspector nodded and knelt, grabbing the unconscious detective underneath the arms and hoisting him up onto the cement.

"**What happened?"** Inspector Powell asked the teen as she climbed out of the pool.

"**Someone handcuffed Saguru to this thirty pound weight and left him to drown,"** Kasuma explained, motioning to said weight, which was sitting at the bottom of the pool. **"It's a good thing I always have my lock picks o—" **Kasuma cut herself off as the sound of an ambulance siren approached and stopped. Kasuma knelt down next to Hakuba and set two fingers against his neck. 'Weak but there's still a pulse. Thank goodness.'

Inspector Powell turned to one of his men,** "Contact Inspector Nakamori and tell him what has happened. If he's chasing KID or Mage, tell him that my men will take care of it. He **_**needs**_** to get here."** The officer nodded and pulled out a radio.

Kasuma glanced up at the Inspector, scooting away as the paramedics made to attend to Hakuba. **"Will he be okay?"** Kasuma asked, nodded her head towards the officer.** "I don't believe Nakamori-keibu speaks that much English."**

"**Don't worry about that,"** Powell reassured. **"Officer Lyons' wife is Japanese. It's not perfect but Lyons can be understood."** One of the paramedics approached Kasuma and offered her a towel which she gratefully accepted.

Within the next minute, Nakamori, Conan, and Hattori had arrived at the hotel, the three of them being led in by one of Powell's men. "What the hell happened?"

"Nakamori-keibu!" Kasuma called out, standing up. Kasuma looked behind her at Hakuba, "Hakuba was attacked."

"What?" Nakamori, Conan, and Hattori exclaimed at once.

"KID found him in this pool and told Mage and I as he flew over the SAM's rooftop. When I dove into the pool, I found Hakuba with his wrist handcuffed to a thirty pound weight," Kasuma explained, looking behind her once again.

"Is Hakuba-niichan okay?" Conan asked the teen.

Kasuma nodded, "The paramedics are tending to him right now, but I don't think he's regained consciousness yet. He… should be fine."

"'Ey, ya should get somethin' dry'r, yer soakin'!" Hattori pointed out.

"I know but…" For a third time, Kasuma looked back at the unconscious detective. Said detective coughed several times and slowly sat up, bringing a hand to his forehead. "Hakuba!" Towel forgotten, Kasuma ran over to the detective and wrapped her arms around his neck, **"You're alright."**

"**Yeah… Somehow,"** Hakuba mumbled, returning the hug weakly. He pulled back, **"Why are you all wet?"**

"**She dove in after you and picked the handcuff around your wrist," **Powell explained, crouching down to the ground. **"Are you alright, Saguru?"**

"**Yes, I'm alright,"** Hakuba nodded.

Hattori turned to one of the hotel workers, **"Hey, is there anywhere they can dry off?"**

"**We can open up the spa for them to use… there's a private soaking bath and rain shower in there,"** the manager suggested.

"**Then I should go to the car and get us some spare clothing,"** Kasuma murmured, walking to her discarded jacket and fishing out her car keys.

"**Here, let me do that."**

Kasuma jerked her head over to the speaker, **"Amunet!"**

Amunet grinned, showcasing a peace sign, **"Neko-chan is here! Now hand me the car keys, I'll take care of the clothes."**

"**But why are you here? Doesn't your flight back to Oregon take off at nine? Shouldn't you be resting?"**

"**Why would I rest when Mage has returned to the States with a new partner for just one heist, only to head back to Japan right after? I wasn't going to miss that. And if I miss my flight, I can always take the next one… nothing too serious, I wasn't planning on going to school after the flight anyway—jetlag or **_**no**_** jetlag."** Amunet accepted the keys Kasuma held out to her. **"Alrighty, I'll be back with some spares!"** Amunet waved as she ran out the hotel and down the street.

**Final Notes: I have no idea how the Four Seasons Hotel is formatted since I've never been there so I'm sorry if I'm wrong about the layout. It was the best location (aka closest) and since I didn't want Hakuba weighed down in Puget Sound… this was the next best thing.**

**Translation  
****Spanish  
****Está bien, ha tenido algunos antes. **(It's okay, he's had some before.)

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Poison **_**again?**_** What **_**is**_** it with me and poison?"**_


	28. Speedy Movement (22)

**A/N: Part sixteen of the Pandora Arc! (This arc is coming to a close…) And here's the final, BETAed version of the chapter. For those who hadn't read this prior to now, I had uploaded an unBETAed chapter because it had been two months since my last update. But now it's up so enjoy~!  
****Warnings: Samizu Kichiemon  
****Acknowledgments: Cai-chan  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Random tidbit alert! There is a group of people who are planning to fan dub Case Closed… from where Funimation left off (aka episode 124) I hope they (me included :D) can get this dub in progress. I'm excited!**

**Today's quote is: "In Hogwarts, they use magic; in Rome, they use slaves."—Papilio**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Speedy Movement

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
November 29, 10:15 AM

"Take a look at this," Kasuma said, handing Conan a newspaper article.

"What's this…?" Conan looked at the front page article. "…Hey… isn't this…?"

"Sugihara Kohaku. The business man that was sitting across from you on the way to Seattle. He's been arrested on the charge of twenty-seven murders. His most recent successful strike was in California," Kasuma explained.

"The Detective Serial Killer?" Conan asked.

Kasuma gave a short nod. She looked around the office, making sure no one was in the vicinity, and continued, "Seems he lied to the officer interviewing him on the plane. His mother is, in fact, dead. His nervousness stemmed from the heavy number of officers on the plane. Apparently, his motive was because of the careless mistake a detective made in the past which caused the death of his wife and children. Potassium Cyanide was found on his person when the police arrested him. He told the police he was planning on using it on you, Shinichi-kun, when… rather _if_, by chance, he ran into you."

"Poison _again?_ What _is_ it with me and poison?" Conan exclaimed with a growl. "Oh," Conan looked up at the teen, "How is Hakuba-san?"

"Fine from what I've heard," Kasuma answered. "I haven't seen him myself… I've been busy catching up on my hours, since the WLH messed up my entire schedule at the mall. In fact, I was just about to leave for the mall… after I checked on Ai-chan. I'm worried about that agent who's supposedly supposed to track her down."

Conan quirked an eyebrow, "…You mean… Bourbon?"

"Is that the codename? I don't remember reading a codename… but maybe I just wasn't paying close enough attention."

Conan nodded. "I heard about him from Jodie-sensei… FBI agent," Conan added after a few moments.

"So you know…? About this intelligence gathering agent?" Conan responded with a small nod. Before Conan could input a comment, a beeping from the agency's fax machine caught his attention. Conan ran over to the machine and pulled out a white sheet of paper, eyes widening when he read its contents.

"It's… a _heist_ note," Conan murmured. At that statement, Kasuma immediately joined Conan by Mouri's desk, leaning over the desk to read the note.

"'A treasure hundreds of years into existence with the true age of 61 will soon be recovered by us who meow nine months and three days after its birth… KID and Mage…' What the hell?" Kasuma exclaimed. Conan faintly heard a vibration and turned to see Kasuma opening her phone and quickly bringing it to her ear.

She jerked her hand away just as quickly and even Conan could hear the exclamation emanating from the phone. _"KAZUKI, YOU'RE LATE! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE __**ASAP**__!"_

"Ah, shimatta!" Kasuma returned the phone to her ear, "Sorry, sorry! I'll be right there Kaemon-san. Something came up at my place but I'll be there in five." Kasuma closed her phone and gave Conan a brief wave. "See you later, Shinichi-kun," she said, running out of the agency and down the street.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
November 30, 3:49 PM

Kasuma sat on the desk in the library of her home, an amused eyebrow raised as she noticed Hakuba's eyes still on her. Even as she jumped off and walked over to one of the bookshelves, she could feel his eyes on her. Pulling off a book about gemstones and turning, she threw the book towards the detective, who barely registered and caught the book. "Okay, I know you have a hawk but you don't have to _act_ like one," she remarked with a small smile.

"You don't really give me much of a choice," Hakuba responded.

"You worry too much," Kasuma said with a sigh. "I haven't gotten myself killed and I'm not about to anytime soon. I wonder how you'll be when it comes time for you to actually _worry_."

"Don't remind me. _Please,"_ Hakuba muttered.

"Will you be acting this predatory when Conan-kun and whoever's with him comes?"

"Ojamashimasu~!" Came a chorus of voices at that moment.

"You left the door unlocked?" Hakuba asked incredulously.

Kasuma shrugged, "They might not have had a key… If Ai-chan wasn't with them."

"Kasuma-oneesan!" Ayumi ran into the library first, followed by Genta, Mitsuhiko, Agasa, and finally Conan. "Can we play some of your games?"

"Go ahead," Kasuma nodded. "You don't have to ask."

"Arigato!" Ayumi and the boys, minus Conan, exclaimed. The three children proceeded to run up the stairs, disappearing behind a corner, Agasa following at a leisurely pace, chuckling.

"I half expected them to run up to the games immediately," Kasuma murmured as Conan walked further into the room. "Was Ai-chan with you, Conan-kun?" Conan shook his head.

"I'm over here," Came Haibara's quiet voice. The scientist had just entered carrying an empty food bowl, several toys, and Neko in her arms, which was a feat in itself—Neko was no small puppy.

"Ai-chan," Kasuma moved across the room and took the bowl and toys from Haibara's already occupied hands. "I'm sure you could have taken several trips… instead of bringing Neko and her stuff up in one go."

"She was too excited," Haibara defended. "I didn't want to trip over her or something." Haibara giggled quietly as Neko happily licked her left cheek as if in response.

"Mattaku," Kasuma slumped in defeat. "Oh, where's Winter?"

"Sleeping on Takeo-kun's bed," Haibara answered. "Oh, and I told Hakase to monitor the others' behavior. He will make sure they're not _too _destructive in his room."

"Right… Uh, Hakuba," Kasuma turned to the British detective, "Can you look up 'Cat's Eye' in that book I tossed you? Or maybecymophane would be better?"

"Will you tell me your reason for doing so?" Hakuba asked, opening the book and flipping through the pages.

"That's probably the gem type KID and Mage are after this time. Otherwise, the random 'meow' in the heist note wouldn't make sense," Kasuma explained.

"Now the hardest part of that riddle is figuring out what that 'true age' phrase means," Conan murmured. "It's not possible to be in existence for hundreds of years yet have a 'true age of sixty-one' so maybe it's not using the literal term?"

"And it seems we can't figure out _when_ they strike until we figure out that part," Kasuma remarked.

'True age of sixty-one… nine months and three days after its birth… Could it be…?' Haibara set Neko next to her food bowl which Kasuma had placed by the foot of a book shelf and faced the three detectives in the library. "What about a leap year?"

"Eh?" Kasuma turned to look at Haibara.

"Every four years, February gains an extra day. If someone was born on February twenty-nine, then it'd be another four years before that same day comes around again. However, people in those situations generally celebrate their birthday on the twenty-eighth but if you disregard that fact, the 'true age of sixty-one' part makes sense. And to further back that up, November is nine months after February."

"In that case, the last leap year was last year," Kasuma mumbled almost to herself. "So sixty-one times four is…"

"Two hundred forty-four," Haibara answered immediately. "Whatever it is, it's been around for two hundred forty-five years."

"And with that information, we now know the heist will take place on the second of December… nine months and three days after it was found," Conan mused.

"Now to figure out what 'it' _is_," Hakuba murmured.

"Oh crap!" Kasuma suddenly exclaimed. "I forgot to give you the supplies you asked for, Ai-chan. Since I've been so busy this week, it completely slipped my mind! C'mon, I'll get them now." Kasuma led Haibara out the library and in the direction of the car garage, leaving the two boys very confused.

Conan then bounded happily over to Hakuba, "Ne, ne, Hakuba-niichan?"

"What is it?" Hakuba asked, taking his eyes off the library doors and pulling a laptop out of a drawer of the room's desk.

"Why were you watching Kasuma-neechan so intently?"

Hakuba started at the question before closing his eyes and opening the laptop. "I've… been trying to figure out what she's been doing outside of school and work. She's already begun working insane hours and I was hoping to catch any other change in her usual habits."

Kasuma returned in that moment, without Haibara, and picked up Neko, who had pranced up to her, cradling the puppy to her chest. "How's the jewel search?"

"I was just about to start that," Hakuba answered. "Although, it would have been nicer if KID and Mage had hinted at a physical location in their manifesto. That would have made the search easier."

"Since when has _either_ of them made our searches 'easier'?" Kasuma countered.

"Good point." Hakuba opened an Internet browser and began pulling up the websites of local museums while Conan flipped open his phone and began a search in that same manner. Kasuma set Neko gently on the floor then walked over to Hakuba, leaning over the desk to read the information on the computer screen.

"Hey, what about that museum?" Kasuma asked, pointing to one of the links on the site. "I heard they received some new artifacts recently." Hakuba opened up the page, scanning through the different sections of the website.

The door to the library opened and Haibara poked her head in, "Kasuma-neechan? Can you help me… with the higher shelves in the lab?"

"Sure. I'll be right there," Kasuma answered. Haibara closed the door. "You know… Ai-chan's like you," Kasuma looked over at Hakuba. "She _loooves_ science. Maybe even _more_ so…" Kasuma started for the door, "Well, I assume you'll continue looking for the jewel so I'll see what Ai-chan needs… Actually, I might as well pull a snack together." Kasuma opened the library doors and shut them behind her.

Haibara was waiting several meters from the doors and Kasuma urged her towards the kitchen. "Can you give me a hand with some snacks before we head down to the lab?" Haibara nodded, following Kasuma down the hall and into the kitchen. "Let's see… what do we have in here?" Kasuma asked herself as she opened several cabinets and sifted through the variety of bags and containers inside.

In the meantime, Haibara pulled out two large ceramic bowls and set them on the kitchen table, kneeling on the chair to give herself better purchase. "Ne…" Kasuma stopped what she was doing and looked behind her at the scientist. "Do _you_ think I can find an antidote? With how everything's been going, it seems hopeless."

Kasuma closed her eyes briefly, opening them shortly after and pulling out several packets of Yan Yan and a large bag of potato chips. "If you could create it, you can cure it… You just need to find the right formula. Stop being a pessimist. You're smart… that's why the Organization wanted you. You can find an antidote." Kasuma ripped open the bag of chips and poured them out into the two bowls set out on the table.

"But if I had my notes…! Or if I was able to get a hold of the original research…"

"What have you been doing so far?" Kasuma cut in, dropping the packets of Yan Yan into one of the bowls and taking the two bowls in her arms.

"Well since the cells are what are affected, I tried utilizing several kinds of proteins that have the potential of sustaining cell growth but…"

"Not the right combo?" Kasuma finished, walking out of the kitchen and up the stairs to the room at the end of the hall. Kasuma nudged the partially opened door open, "Hey kids, you want some snacks?"

"Snacks? What kind?" Genta asked excitedly.

"Potato chips and Yan Yans," Kasuma answered, setting one of the bowls on the floor a meter or so away from the television. The three kids jumped up excitedly and dragged the large bowl closer to themselves.

"Arigato!" the three of them chorused in unison.

"Dou itashi mashite," Kasuma murmured, her eyes shooting to the white dog in the room, who was now stretching. Winter jumped off the bed and trotted out the room, in the direction of the kitchen, where her bowl of food was waiting.

"Bye, bye, Winter-chan!" Ayumi exclaimed cheerfully. Winter barked in acknowledgement, then continued on her way.

"Well, enjoy," Kasuma said then. She closed the door and headed down the stairs again, Haibara at her heels. "I'll be right with you Ai-chan, so just head down to the lab. First I'm gonna drop off this bowl and see how the boys are doing with the heist." Haibara nodded and walked further into the house, disappearing down a flight of stairs leading towards the basement, where the lab held its domain. Kasuma once again opened the doors to the library and made for the desk inside, setting the bowl down after reaching her destination. "How's the hunt coming along?"

"Well, unless we're mistaken, we've found the gem," Hakuba replied. "The Blue Door. It's a turquoise cat's eye and was called 'blue door' because of the white line cutting through the center of the jewel… almost like a door streaming bright light in."

"It's cut as a sphere and is being held at a building near the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum," Conan continued.

"So it ended up being at that museum I pointed out?" Kasuma mumbled. "Or at least, near that museum… I guess it _was_ part of that new wave of artifacts. Was it really found on February twenty-nine?"

Hakuba nodded. "Two hundred forty-five years ago, it was found in India near Sri Lanka and was soon after moved to the building where it currently rests. How it got here, exactly, is a mystery. What we _do_ know is the building was built by Samizu Kichiemon about two hundred years ago."

"Which means, it's bound to have some sort of trap or some clever trick embedded within it," Conan said.

"Hmm… Well, help yourselves to chips and whatever else I have in the kitchen. I need to help Ai-chan in the lab," Kasuma turned and exited the library, following the path Haibara had taken earlier and entering the lab. She closed the door behind her and locked it, facing the young scientist. "So… what did you _really_ need my help for?"

* * *

Ekoda, Japan  
Kuroba Residence  
December 1, 3:51 PM

"See ya later, Aoko!" Kaito waved as Aoko walked back down the path towards the sidewalk. Sighing, Kaito closed the door and headed up to his room, rubbing the back of his head. Opening the door to his room, Kaito unbuttoned the collar of his gakuran, setting his book bag on his desk. It was then that he got a weird sensation, like his sixth sense was trying to tell him something. Pulling out his card gun, Kaito quietly stole out of his room, silently checking all the rooms on the second floor. Finding nothing, Kaito headed down the stairs, adopting the same routine as his second floor search.

Now in the family room back on the second floor, Kaito stared at his father's portrait, the room behind it being the only place he didn't search. 'I really doubt it but… Just to be sure.' Kaito pushed the portrait and slipped inside, keeping the image of his father as Kaitou KID facing the lair. Walking blindly—though not _quite_, due to his night vision—Kaito entered the hidden room and felt around for the light, flipping it on. "Holy crap!" Kaito exclaimed when he saw a figure in black leaning against the desk in the room. "I was _not_ expecting you to be here! How did you get here?"

Mage looked up and smirked, adjusting the blue cap on her head. "I knocked, of course." Mage pushed off the desk, patting the sleeves of her black turtleneck. "And I had something to show you. It was urgent. Hence the sneaking into your lair."

"This doesn't have anything to do with tomorrow's heist, does it?" Kaito asked, tucking his card gun into an inside pocket of his uniform.

"None at all," Mage answered. "But it _does_ have to do with heists in general." Curious, Kaito joined Mage by the desk. On the desk, by the computer, was a single sheet of paper with the image of a pink-orange colored jewel on it. Underneath the image was a short paragraph describing the jewel.

"What _is_ this?" Kaito asked, picking up the paper and reading it over.

"Do you know what 'amaraniya' means?"

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Near the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum  
December 2, 10:47 PM

"Do we even have an idea of _when_ KID and Mage'll strike?" Kasuma asked as she leaned against the wall of the room housing Blue Door.

Hakuba turned his eyes towards the female detective then shrugged. "The best bet we have is going with the time the jewel was found… eleven eleven."

"In that case, we have a little less than a half hour until then," Kasuma murmured, glancing at her watch. "Now the question is: how to kill the time?"

"Nakamori-keibu's taking care of security and there are already plenty of officers scattered around the building," Conan whispered from beside Kasuma.

"Well, we could try figuring out what Samizu Kichiemon did to this room," Kasuma suggested.

"Well, nothing was triggered when we entered so that's ruled out," Hakuba murmured. "It's possible something inside the room needs to be tripped for whatever it is to activate but if that's the case…"

"Then we haven't come across it," Kasuma finished.

"Oi, Hakuba-kun! Get over here!" Nakamori yelled from across the room. Shrugging, Hakuba complied, leaving Kasuma and Conan by the wall.

"You're not going with him?" Conan asked.

Kasuma shook her head, "Nakamori-keibu's not gonna completely trust me since I constantly refuse to have my cheek pinched. Besides, I'd rather observe from the outskirts… that way, I don't have to split my mind between some plan and scanning the room for the thieves." For a while, the two of them were quiet, simply watching the officers run in and out of the room, some with baggage, others without.

"Ne, Kasuma-chan," Conan began, breaking the silence between them. "Hakuba-san seems to be worrying about some strange habit changes you go through. What exactly is he talking about?"

Kasuma smirked, her eyes closed. "He's _still _fretting about that?"

"What are you talking about?"

"It's a yearly routine," Kasuma answered shrugging. "I've been doing it for a few years now… I don't know why he worries; I always come out of it in one piece."

'Oi, oi,' Conan thought. 'Will you explain what 'it' _is_?' Before Conan could voice his next question, a familiar laugh flooded the room.

Nakamori whipped around in a circle, "KID! Where the _hell _are you? Show yourself!"

"As you wish, Keibu~!" KID crooned, his voice cueing a cloud of smoke that nearly filled the room.

Cursing, Nakamori sent an order across the room, "Bring the cage down!" In response, there was a loud _CLANG_ and the clearing smoke revealed what looked like a steel cage surrounding the Blue Door. "HA!" Nakamori exclaimed then. "Try getting through_ that_ KID!"

"Very well," KID murmured with a laugh. "I wonder if I can harness the abilities of Kid Flash to speed my way to that jail cell."

"Wow," Kasuma rolled her eyes, "Way to make us sound like the bad guys. Not to mention almost _no one_ in this room will recognize who Kid Flash is. By the way, where's your partner,_ KID_?"

"Hmm… No idea!" KID exclaimed happily—_too_ happily, Conan thought. "I wonder what happened… Let me see if I can find Aibou." There was another cloud of smoke and KID disappeared. Following the thief's disappearance, there was a period of silence between the officers and detectives alike, all of them awaiting the reappearance of the thief and his partner. When yet another cloud of smoke filled the room, the figure revealed was not KID but Mage, calmly smoothing out a sleeve of her white suit.

"So it's Mage now," Kasuma murmured.

"What the hell do you have planned?" Nakamori yelled to the thief.

Mage released a laugh. "Well if I told you that, then that would ruin me as a magician," Mage answered in her neutralized voice. She tilted her head to the left, looking over at Nakamori. "Wouldn't it?" Mage pulled out her gun and shot two projectiles, the projectiles spewing smoke when they landed on the floor. Seconds later, another cloud of smoke appeared and with it the second arrival of KID. This time, he was significantly closer to the middle of the room.

Nakamori growled, then swept an arm around the room, "What are you waiting for? Dog-pile him!"

"W-wait," Kasuma tried to get out, "That might not be a very good id—"

KID let out a hearty laugh. "Impatient, now aren't we, Keibu?" Before the officers could reach him, KID disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Almost immediately after the smoke cleared, another smoke bomb activated and Mage appeared, standing in one of the corners of the room and waving smoke away from her face.

"Wow, we seem to really like smoke today," she said nonchalantly.

"You're sure taking your time to get to the jewel," Kasuma muttered.

"Yes," Mage said in reply, "We are." The thief shrugged. "Well, it's not like we have to rush or anything." Mage ruffled the bangs of her bright pink wig. "It's not a Week Long Heist, after all. It will all be over… in a matter of time." Having said this, Mage tossed several smoke bombs and disappeared with a short wave. When the smoke cleared, KID was standing in the middle of the cage, waving cheekily at the officers in the room.

"H-how?" Nakamori choked out.

"I said I'd harness Kid Flash's abilities, did I not?" KID grinned, opening the jewel case as he continued. "And can't Kid Flash oscillate his molecules through solid objects?" KID extracted the Blue Door and gave another wave. "Ja ne~!" KID released another smoke bomb and disappeared, hearing the beginnings of a famous Nakamori profanity rant.

So busy with organizing a squad to chase the thieves, Nakamori failed to notice the white note that had been left on the soft cushion of the jewel stand. One of the three detectives at the heist, after raising the steel cage, picked it up before departing the room in order to join the chase.

**Final Notes: The building built by Samizu Kichiemon I completely made up. I just needed some excuse to utilize for KID and Mage's trick. Oh, and if you know what 'amaraniya' means then rejoice but please don't say anything. I wonder if anyone caught the foreshadowing sentence in this chapter…**

**And here's a note written by Cai-chan…  
****B/N: Cai-chan would like to extend her most sincere apologies for taking **_**2 whole months**_** to BETA a single chapter (and a short one at that). The only feeble excuse she can offer is the tortures of junior year. She wishes she had a better one, like flying with dragons or saving the world, but alas, she does not. However, if you, like Cai-chan, have an overactive imagination and would like to believe she really was flying, befriending dragons and saving the world, she will fully support you in that.  
****P.S. Please, **_**please**_** don't kill Azarath for taking so long. It's really not her fault. You can kill Cai-chan if you must. (But that really wouldn't be very nice)**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "I was ready and planning to wait until morning. Hmm, I even got myself comfortable."**_


	29. Gem of Immortality (23)

**A/N: Part seventeen of the Pandora Arc! (And the last part of this arc. Yatta!)  
****Warnings: Shooting(s) and profanities (that I will not translate)  
****Acknowledgments: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): From the chapter title, I'm sure you all know what's going on here… NOTE (PLEASE READ): This chapter has yet to be BETAed; however, since it has been two months since my last update, I wanted to add this chapter to at least give you all _something_. I _will_ update it with a BETAed version but for now, it remains unBETAed... **

**Review Reply(s)  
****lion: thank you very much for reading~! I'm glad you like my story. It's always nice to have that person that just loves to fool around. If Ran ever felt jealous, she certainly didn't show it. And you're welcome~!**

**Today's quote is: *Iocus stares at scarf* "Is this a waffle?"—Iocus**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Gem of Immortality

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
December 3, 4:03 PM

"'Immortality is a hefty bargain, don't you think? We will remove immortality once and for all. Expect us on the first weekend day of the month at one before the second. KID and Mage…' Is what it says," Kasuma said as she set the note on the desk of the agency.

"'Immortality…' What do they mean by that?" Conan murmured, cupping his chin with a hand.

"Beats me," Kasuma shrugged, tossing her book bag on the couch of the agency.

"Well, 'immortality' in Japanese is 'fushi,'" Conan mused. "Could _that_ be what they're looking for?"

Kasuma shrugged, "It wouldn't hurt to try… Look around for a jewel with 'fushi' in its name? Or, if not Japanese, maybe other languages?"

"Do you have to work today?" Conan asked.

Kasuma shook her head, "Kaemon-san forced me to take at least a day off. But this works out perfectly. I'm gonna start putting up my parents' old Christmas decorations and start wrapping some presents I got a while ago."

"You celebrate Christmas? Well… I guess I should have expected that, all the places you've stayed in celebrate it," Conan mumbled as he grabbed the heist note and began copying it into his Shonen Tantei notebook.

"Of course," Kasuma replied. "It's my favorite holiday. On Christmas, we should get everyone together to celebrate. Ne?"

"Ah," Conan looked up in time to see Kasuma picking up her book bag, "Un."

"See you later, Conan-kun," Kasuma said, opening the door of the office and walking down the stairs. The female detective flipped open her book bag and dug around for a small velvet box, which she pulled out and examined, never opening it. 'I'm surprised you never noticed this, Shinichi-kun. And I hid it in second floor kitchen. Or maybe you just let Ran-san dominate that area and, therefore, that's why you never found it.' She palmed the box and, slipping her arm through the book bag's handle, extracted her keychain and unlocked the gate to her home. She looked to her left at the Santa Claus decoration. She sighed, "I need to fix that up, don't I?" Kasuma used her key once more and opened the main door, shutting and locking it before toeing off her shoes and walking through the foyer. "At least Ai-chan and the Shonen Tantei are over at Agasa-hakase's house… That gives me time to work."

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Unknown  
December 3, 4:41 PM

Vermouth watched as Kasuma tossed her burden on the couch in the library. Briefly, she walked out of viewing range of the small camera but when she came back, the teen was carrying a large blue bin to an empty wall in the library. Vermouth let a small smile slip through—no one was there to see it anyway—as she watched Kasuma lift an old, long, brown cardboard box, opening it up with ease. 'Tick, tock, tick, tock… What will you do as the time draws near, my dear?' As Kasuma was setting up the spine of a fake green tree, her head jerked in the direction of the library entrance. Hakuba Saguru, a person Vermouth had only seen at a distance and mainly when he was a young child, walked into the spacious room, engaging in an unheard conversation with the house's current owner. "So you're still in the area?" Vermouth murmured as she eased a cigarette out of its carton, lighting it after placing it between her lips. Holding it between her fingers lightly, she blew out a puff of smoke, moving her gaze to an article about aforementioned British detective. 'Chief Police Hakuba's son has made quite a name for himself, haven't you?' Vermouth returned her gaze to the hidden camera feed, currently displaying the two childhood friends as they slid fake tree branches into the spine. "So close, my dear, so close." Vermouth lowered the laptop screen and stood, walking towards the veranda of the building she was residing.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
December 3, 5:02 PM

"Was there any reason as to why you dropped by here?" Kasuma asked her childhood friend as she grabbed another bunch of branches.

"Other than discussing the heist note and checking up on your condition? None," Hakuba responded, digging through the cardboard for more pieces of the tree.

"Hmm… What about the heist note?"

"I figured out that it'll occur on the fifth of this month either one minute before midnight or one hour before midnight," Hakuba explained, affixing the top of the tree to the spine.

"So the 'immortality' part is still the hardest?" Kasuma mumbled. "Conan-kun was confused by that as well when I dropped by the agency after school. Before I left, he was beginning to search for jewels with 'immortality' in it."

"That's what I wanted to ask you about," Hakuba said, accepting a box of ornaments and opening said box.

"…What?" Kasuma stopped rummaging through the blue bin in front of her to look up at Hakuba.

"There's a jewel that just surfaced," Hakuba began as he began hanging the ornaments on random branches of the tree. "We know nothing about it except for its name and the type of jewel it is."

"Which is…?" Kasuma prompted, opening another box of ornaments and arranging them around the tree.

"It's called 'Amaraniya' and it's a Padparadscha," Hakuba responded, setting the now empty box off to the side and grabbing a new one.

"A Padparadscha? That's rare," Kasuma mused. "So what about this jewel? You wanted to ask me something about it?"

"Yeah. Do you know the language of origin of the name Amaraniya?… is what I wanted to ask."

Kasuma frowned as she repeatedly said the jewel's name over and over in her head. After a while, she shook her head, "I can't think of anything… but it's probably in one of my dictionaries."

Hakuba set the box of ornaments down on the ground and walked over to the section in Kasuma's library with world languages. "Can you give me a list of languages you know? And I mean, you know them pretty well."

Kasuma continued hanging ornaments on the tree as she listed off, "Japanese, English, German, Italian, Korean, Arabic, any of the Filipino languages, Spanish, French, Latin, Russian, Greek… I believe that's about it."

"Hmm… that still leaves a ton of other languages… that doesn't narrow it down much."

"Are there any other possible targets?" Kasuma asked as she paused in her decorating and joined Hakuba by the section of language dictionaries. She pulled a random one off the shelf.

"Nothing that matches their criteria," Hakuba sighed. "Most of them are far too small to pass as KID or Mage targets." Hakuba grabbed another random dictionary off the shelf and scanned through the 'a' section.

Kasuma didn't respond, instead returning the first dictionary and grabbing another one. This pattern continued for some time until… "Hey, I found it!" Kasuma responded, fingering the desired entry. "'Amaraniya'… it means 'immortal.'"

"What language is that?" Hakuba asked, returning the book in his hand to the shelf.

Kasuma looked at the front cover. "Sanskrit… Now that I think of it… isn't 'padparadscha' derived from 'padmaraga'? Isn't that Sanskrit too?" Kasuma flipped to the 'p' section and scanned the pages for the word in question. "Yeah… 'padmaraga' means 'lotus blossom' or 'lotus-hued' in Sanskrit. Now it makes sense to use Sanskrit… seeing as how the gem type has a name in Sanskrit as well."

"Then I think we found our target," Hakuba murmured, returning to the Christmas tree, Kasuma following closely behind. A clear, plastic bag caught his eyes, and the British detective carefully pulled it out of the blue bin. He smiled, "I remember these… your parents would never let you near these for fear of you breaking them." Hakuba then realized what he just said and jerked his eyes behind him, worried that his comment would affect Kasuma negatively.

Kasuma gave a small smile in return. "Yeah… but I was young at that time… I _think_ I'm old enough to handle those now." Kasuma tugged on the zipper and pulled out a glass angel.

"Kasuma…neechan?" A voice called into the house. "Is there someone else here?"

"In the library!" Kasuma yelled back, hanging the angel and grabbing more glass ornaments to place on the tree. The library doors opened with a soft click and Haibara entered first, followed by Genta, Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, and finally Conan. "Ai-chan… I wasn't expecting you back until much later… And I see you found Conan-kun and pulled him away from the heist note."

Meanwhile, the Shonen Tantei, minus Conan and Haibara had run up to Kasuma and Hakuba, admiring the tree in the room with a resounding, "Sugoi!"

"You celebrate Christmas, Kasuma-oneesan?" Ayumi asked.

"Always have, always will," Kasuma answered. "I've even figured out some presents for all of the Shonen Tantei-dan."

"Really?"

"Even Haibara-san and Conan-kun?" Mitsuhiko cut in.

"Of course. They're part of the Shonen Tantei, aren't they?" Kasuma replied with a smile. "You know what… do you guys wanna help me put these ornaments on the tree?" The three kids in front of the tree answered with a happy 'Yeah!' and the each took the boxes Kasuma handed them. After telling the kids how to organize the ornaments around the tree so duplicates weren't too close to each other, Kasuma knelt down in front of Conan and Haibara. "Make sure they don't hang up the ornaments in the clear bag… those are glass. And you two are the only ones allowed on the ladder for the higher branches. Okay?" Haibara and Conan nodded in understanding and Kasuma, nodding to herself, grabbed Hakuba's arm and a big plastic bag next to him and pulled him outside.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Edo-Tokyo Museum  
December 5, 10:21 PM

"_They'll_ be rabid tonight," Mage murmured, looking down from the roof at the line of police cars surrounding the museum.

"Of course," KID shrugged. "This may very well be our last heist."

"And we have to make sure _they_ don't follow us up. They _can't _come into the line of fire." Mage stepped away from the rooftop edge and slipped on a brown wig cap, accepting the long, dark brown wig KID extended towards her.

"That means a bunch of traps," KID whispered, brows drawn in a frown. Mage pulled the wig over her wig cap, adjusting the bangs to sweep over the left side. She shrugged off the black jacket and pulled a dark red one over her black tank top, shedding the baggy sweatpants to reveal light skinny jeans. She slipped off her blue sneakers and replaced them with a pair of tall, brown boots.

"Kazuki Kasuma is the only one who can get close enough to them," Mage mumbled, opening a mirror and applying makeup to change her face to that of the female detective. "Before I run into them, I'll walk around and set tons of traps. Then I'll sneak a tracker onto Nakamori-keibu, Tantei-kun, and Holmes—shit!" Mage closed the mirror with a huff and slipped it into a pocket of her jacket. "I'll fix everything else in the bathroom. Kaitou, I put the Kevlar in the storage closet on the top floor. Be sure to pick it up before you reach the rooftop… Snake won't give a rat's ass about injuring us to get this jewel… and neither would Croc… if he was here." Mage opened the door leading to the lower floors of the museum as KID disappeared behind the door of a rooftop storage room, both preparing for the night's heist.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Edo-Tokyo Museum  
December 5, 10:46 PM

"Kasuma…?" Hakuba spotted a familiar red jacket and promptly left the special exhibition room to catch up to the figure. "Kasuma!" Kasuma turned around.

"Oh, hey Hakuba," Kasuma greeted with a smile.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was curious about what Keibu-san was going to do security-wise," Kasuma said with a shrug, following Hakuba back into the special exhibition. "So I decided to look around."

"Are you going to hang around?" Hakuba asked, taking up his former position against the wall, Conan staring up at Kasuma curiously.

Kasuma shook her head, "I need to finalize the timings for all the lights and find my mother's tree topper… so I'll be heading home soon."

"I see," Hakuba murmured.

"Where _is_ the Task Force head, anyway?" Kasuma asked, scanning the exhibition room.

"Nakamori-keibu's on one of the higher floors, setting up officers around the halls up there," Conan answered brightly, coming around to stand in front of Kasuma.

"Hmm." Kasuma read the time on her watch. "Well then, I should probably go… Ai-chan's probably wondering where I went." Kasuma zipped up her jacket and pulled out a set of keys. "I'll see you guys later." Kasuma waved and departed the museum.

"…She hasn't started her eating pattern," Hakuba murmured, watching the doors swing closed.

"Nani? Hakuba-niichan…?"

"She hasn't lost any weight yet… so she hasn't changed her eating pattern," Hakuba reiterated.

''Lost any weight'… What weight _is_ there for her to lose? Kasuma-chan's already pretty thin as it is,' Conan thought with a frown directed at the British detective. 'What the hell is he on about?'

* * *

Elsewhere in the museum, KID was laying flat on his stomach, peering through the slits of a ventilation grate. Below him was the room in which Amaraniya was being held, guards surrounding the jewel and officers prowling the premises. A soft crackle surfaced from the earpiece in his left ear. "Mage?" he whispered.

"Yeah, it's me," Mage's neutralized voice answered. "I really need to thank Tantei-chan for usually wearing such little makeup… makes it easier to change out. Anyway, where are you?"

"In the vents above the exhibition room," KID answered quietly. "Surveying the scene."

"Good. I've already bugged Keibu and the Tanteis… all that's left is to grab the gem and pray the law enforcement falls into the traps we've set."

"Are you meeting me in the vents? Or are you taking a different route?" KID asked, shifting his position in the vent carefully, making sure he didn't make any unnecessary noise.

"Well, the restroom I'm in currently doesn't have a vent large enough for me to squeeze through but I have a copy of the blueprints on me so I'll figure something out," Mage answered, her actions sending a soft ruffling through KID's earpiece.

"Well be quick," KID murmured. "It's almost Showtime."

"Yeah I know," Mage answered. "Let's see… I should be there in about…" Mage paused and from the soft pants, KID could tell she was running while attempting to check for the time. "Three minutes," came the final reply. "Less if there aren't any officers in the vicinity."

KID peered through the gaps in the vent grate again before pressing the earpiece closer to his ear. "If I were to activate the smoke bombs now, would you be able to get into the exhibition room in time?"

"Do it," Mage replied tersely. "I'll be in there. Activate them."

"Yosh~!" KID grinned, pulling out a remote control and pressing a certain button. Down below, smoke seeped into the room and KID made use of the confusion to slide the grate away and fall into the room, landing lightly on Amaraniya's case. Seconds after he landed, KID could dimly see Mage's figure as she ran up to the jewel case and immediately pulled out her set of lock picks. However, as the smoke cleared, she didn't begin putting them to use. Lock picks skillfully hidden up her suit sleeve, Mage grinned up at KID before turning her half-concealed gaze to Nakamori.

"Kisama!" said Inspector hissed. "How'd you get past all the guards!"

"Now, now, Keibu~!" KID crooned. "You know we can't reveal that~! How about we chat? Hmm?" Taking that as the cue, Mage grinned and slipped her lock picks out again, working on disabling the single security apparatus around Amaraniya, deep blue wig hiding the rest of her features.

"Stop him!" Nakamori yelled, pointing at Mage.

"Tsk." KID pulled out his card gun and extended it at arm's length, rotating on the jewel case as he shot several playing cards at the advancing officers, startling them into stopping. "Come now, what happened to my chat suggestion?" KID asked innocently with a tilt of his head.

"There's nothing to chat about," Conan replied, taking a step forward, which he immediately regretted when KID responded by shooting a card centimeters from his feet.

"That's not the right attitude," KID admonished. "There are plenty of things to talk about! How about school? Or those murder cases everyone seems to run into? Or the upcoming holidays?" KID sighed, shaking his head. "Why is everyone so unsociable at heists?" Faintly, KID heard a light knocking below him and he took this time to throw a few smoke bombs and send himself up in the air to give Mage time to open the case and slip Amaraniya out. While in the air, KID used his card gun once again, only this time, a grappling hook shooting out and gripping to the edge of the open ventilation grate. He quickly and silently slid away from the opening, barely catching the activation of more smoke bombs, which allowed Mage to pull herself up into the vent. She quietly replaced the grate then nodded to KID who, returning the action, slid onto his stomach and began moving through the vent, Mage following silently behind. They could hear the now faint orders from Nakamori to search for the escaped thieves.

* * *

Conan hissed as he narrowly missed getting caught up in yet _another _trap set by the two phantom thieves. Unfortunately, other officers weren't so lucky. 'That's the fifth one I've seen,' he thought as he backed up a few paces to avoid getting entangled in the net that had just snapped closed. Miraculously, Hakuba had managed to run past the trap without setting off the net so he was standing on the opposite side of the net, looking behind him at said trap with a frown.

"They're being much more persistent with the heist tonight," Hakuba murmured, tugging on the netting in order to find some weak point that would cause it to unravel. "Even to go as far as shooting at us."

"Hakuba-niichan, let's go outside!" Conan suggested brightly. "I doubt KID and Mage set any traps out there." Hakuba nodded, agreeing and bypassed the trap, running towards the museum entrance behind Conan. With the sheer number of traps lying around, Conan and Hakuba didn't make it safely outside until fifteen minutes had passed. Finally making it outside, they noticed Nakamori already outside, using his radio to check the status of his officers inside.

"Most of the officers are caught up in KID and Mage's traps," Hakuba informed the Inspector. "It'll take a while to get them out with the way the traps are functioned."

Nakamori cursed in response before barking out an order to the officers who had made it safely outside. That's when the first gunshot was heard.

* * *

KID kicked the grate open and crawled out, immediately feeling the chill December wind biting through his suit. Mage exited soon after and both thieves froze when the click of a gun brought itself to light. Poker Face slamming over their features, both thieves turned to face the perpetrator. KID smirked. "Long time, no see… Snake."

"Drop the pleasantries," Snake hissed. "Give me the jewel."

"And what makes you think we have it?" Mage returned, sticking her gloved hands into her pant pockets.

"There's no way you'd leave that jewel unprotected… just waiting for my men to retrieve it," Snake spat out. "Now hand it over!"

'That's exactly what we want you to think,' Mage thought.

"Where exactly _are_ these goons of yours?" KID asked then. "They bail on you already? We have yet to start!"

"Think again." At Snake's statement, a dozen or so men clad in black stepped out from the shadows, guns at the ready and poised to strike.

* * *

Snow was beginning to fall when that first gunshot rang out. Those outside the museum instantly began searching for the origin, growing more wary when one, then two, and three more gunshots made themselves known. "Kusou! What the hell is going on?" Nakamori exclaimed.

* * *

With absolutely no hesitation, Mage pulled out from underneath her white suit blazer a sleek, black Walther PPK, successively firing four shots at the men in black, knocking the guns out of their hands. KID, getting over his initial—and hidden—shock, dove behind a metal generator, pulling out his card gun as he did so. Mage fired the remaining five bullets left in her gun then dove in the opposite direction, releasing the magazine as she did. She involuntarily let out a cry when Snake—who had pulled out a second gun—fired at her. Growling quietly, KID threw out several smoke bombs, hoping to assist his partner in crime. Snake hissed. "You won't get away with this you bastards!"

'Try us,' Mage thought, sliding in a second magazine and peeking around the generator.

* * *

Hakuba and Conan had trouble in trying to stop Nakamori from reentering the museum, the surrounding officers too busy with tracing the gunshot origin to assist. With the inspector too busy cursing—quite loudly, at that—he couldn't hear what the two young detectives were trying to warn him about. Finally, a loud cry caught his attention and Nakamori ceased movement, looking up at the overhang where the sound originated from. 'The roof?' Conan ran out from under the overhang and attempted to search the roof, to no avail.

Several more gunshots rang out and a familiar pink smoke cloud spread over the building. "Soko ka?" Nakamori growled. He pulled a radio up to his mouth, "Send helicopters to Edo-Toyko Museum! And be extremely careful! Someone opened fire here!"

* * *

"_You okay, Aibou?"_ KID's voice registered quietly from Mage's earpiece. _"Did you get shot?"_

"_Nicked my right arm,"_ Mage answered back. _"Bastard."_ Mage threw another couple smoke bombs, using her recollection of their last positions to shoot at three of the men, knocking their guns out of their hands.

"_Keep the smoke going on your end,"_ KID said through the earpiece. He placed a small flare in his card gun and aimed it at the open sky. _"I'll fire a flare. Snake and his goons won't stick around much longer if the police have been notified."_

"_No worries there, Kaitou,"_ Mage reassured. _"I just heard Nakamori-keibu send for helicopters over the listening device in his pocket. Just hold up until then."_

"_That was my plan,"_ KID answered, firing the flare then throwing more smoke bombs out onto the roof.

"_Seikou. Dan'yaku no uchi wa,"_ Mage growled, tucking her pistol into her jacket and replacing it with her usual gun. The helicopters arrived faster than the two thieves expected and they both breathed a sigh of relief when they heard retreating footsteps. "Time to retrieve Amaraniya."

By the time the helicopters, Nakamori, and the detectives arrived, all that was left at the scene was a single magazine, at least fourteen bullet shells and a patch of snow stained red.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
December 6, 12:07 AM

Conan collected his school books from off the second floor table and stuffed them into his backpack, one hand holding his cell phone which had an image of the museum rooftop after the heist had ended. The empty magazine sat next to the drops of blood, a thin layer of snow over it. 'Someone got hurt,' Conan thought grimly. A flash from outside caught his attention. Conan looked across the street at the tall building opposite the agency. His eyes widened and he scrambled to the ladder outside the apartment that led to the roof.

"You got hurt," Conan muttered, staring at the blood-stained gauze around Mage's upper right arm as he walked towards the thief.

"Ne, do you know how to destroy a sapphire?" Mage asked Conan, her legs swinging ever so slightly as she sat on the edge of the Agency's roof.

"No." Conan answered.

"Hmm… that's a shame. Neither do I." Mage pulled out the latest heist target from her pocket, gazing at the pink-orange jewel. "KID's looking into it but I hope he finds out soon. The crows are already anxious to get this here gem… that I'm sure of. If their Boss finds out then… the two of us are goners."

"Who are you talking about?"

"A magician never reveals her secret," Mage whispered, setting a finger against her lips.

* * *

Ekoda, Japan  
Hakuba Residence  
December 6, 12:39 AM

Hakuba looked out the window to find a white figure sitting on a tree branch, reclining against the large trunk of the old tree. Slowly, so as not to startle the thief, Hakuba inched over to the window and pulled up the window. The thief's blue eyes flickered over to Hakuba, then moved to focus on the top of the window frame. "I was ready and planning to wait until morning. Hmm, I even got myself comfortable."

Hakuba raised an eyebrow and said, "What are you doing here?"

"I have a favor to ask of you, Tantei-san." Mage sighed and refocused her eyes on Hakuba, "Would you be willing to help a Phantom Thief in one of the biggest takedowns in history?"

* * *

Elsewhere  
December 5, 3:15 PM

"**Are you Eisuke Hondou?"**

**Final Notes: ****And that concludes the search for Pandora! Up next, we have the takedown of the 'Men in Black' and the Aftermath! Yay!  
****I don't believe the translations for 'amaraniya' and 'padparadscha'/'padmaraga' are**_** quite**_** right but I **_**think **_**they're fairly close. *crossesfingers***

**Translation  
****Dan'yaku no uchi wa. **(Out of ammunition.)

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Or helicopter, or boat, or train… Who knows **_**exactly**_** what I ever say?"**_


	30. Temporary Truce (24)

**A/N: Part one of the Men in Black Arc!****Okay, there are three things I'm trying to accomplish with this story: 1) Finding Pandora (check), 2) Taking down the Black Organization (in progress), and 3) Getting those stubborn lovebirds into an official relationship! Yes I'm talkin' to you Shinichi, Ran, Heiji, Kazuha, Kaito, Aoko! You six are so dang clueless!  
****Warnings: Time zone jump(s)... Try not to be confused with the strange times.  
****Acknowledgments: ...  
****Other (possibly irrelevant):****Would Kasuma's constant scheme to get Ran and Shinichi together, in turn, make this story a romance? Answer if you feel like it… I'm just throwing that out there.**

**OMG I'm such a disappointment! I'm so sorry I haven't done anything with this story in _5 MONTHS!_ I've been so swamped lately and I've got school and college looming ahead of me plus Cai-chan hasn't been able to take a look at any of my chapters this year T_T  
So I decided to show you I'm still alive by giving you a double update. YES YOU HEARD RIGHT. A _DOUBLE_ UPDATE! The chapters are still un-BETAed and honestly, I myself haven't looked at them in a while but I know it makes enough sense without having been BETAed. So enjoy~**

**Today's quote is: "When's the ethics paper due?"—Jiwon-chan  
**"**Yesterday."—Azarath235 (aka me)**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Temporary Truce

* * *

United States of America  
Langley High School—Langley, Virginia  
December 5, 3:15 PM

"**Are you Eisuke Hondou?"** A gender-neutralized voice asked.

Eisuke jerked around, finding himself face to face with a woman in her late teens to early twenties. She was wearing a white V-neck shirt and short purple shorts, grey leggings stopping just past her knees. A black, wide-brimmed hat concealed the woman's features. He would have marveled at her beauty had his suspicions of her not been roused. Pushing his glasses farther up his nose, Eisuke frowned, **"Who are you?"**

The woman smiled, tilting her hat up to reveal light blue eyes and short, platinum blonde hair. **"In this form? I call myself Maeka but you may recognize me by my more well-known name: Masked Magician."**

Eisuke took an involuntary step back, hands clutching his backpack tighter.** "Why are you here? What does a **_**thief**_** want with me?"**

"**So you **_**do**_** know of me… Even though I wasn't in America when you were here,"** Mage—rather, Maeka—smirked, stepping closer to the teenager. **"Your older sister is Hidemi Hondou, a CIA agent in the Black Organization, right?"**

Eyes widening, Eisuke rapidly dug through his backpack and extracted a small pistol, pointing it at Maeka, **"Why do you want to know?"**

"**Whoa,"** Maeka stepped back, hands raised next to her face. **"That's a dangerous weapon you have there. You have no use for that… I have no evil intent."** Maeka slipped into Japanese, "I assume I hit the mark, judging from your reaction."

"I'll repeat myself: Why do you want to know?" Eisuke gritted out.

Mage took a small step forward before she lunged, grabbed Eisuke's right wrist and twisted it slightly. Yelping, Eisuke's grip on the pistol loosened and Maeka grabbed it with her left hand, holding it at an angle against her chest. Tucking the weapon into a gun holster Eisuke had not noticed around her waist, Maeka tilted her head to the side, "I want your help."

"What for?" Eisuke asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

"We want to take down the Organization your sister is currently infiltrating and we felt you would be a useful asset."

"Why me? I'm just a clumsy, high-schooler. Why not ask the CIA for help?"

"The CIA won't help us… not a wanted felon," Maeka smirked sadly. "We'd have better luck with the FBI agents that are already on the Organization's trail. And as to 'why you,' that's because you can help us. Both your father and sister gathered information on the Organization and you could help retrieve that information. Of course, we already have a reliable source and she's great and most of our current information is _from_ her and all but… it helps to have a more… wide-spread, I suppose, span of sources. And I'm sure you'd want your sister to be able to start a normal life without the grip of the Organization over her."

"Isn't the source you have enough?" Eisuke asked. "Who is this source anyway? How has she provided you with most of your current information?"

"Our source? She's the only surviving child of two Organization scientists, which is why she knows so much about _Them_. But even if you don't have information to give us… there are other fields I'm sure you could be helpful in. I hear from Tantei-kun that you want to become a CIA agent like your sister and father so you must have decided to take high school courses that will benefit you when that time comes. You could utilize those skills and put them to use against the Organization. You may be clumsy but that doesn't mean you aren't smart."

"A compliment from a thief… I'm not sure how I should take that," Eisuke muttered.

"I'm not a thief right now… I am a person affected by the Organization who's looking for help," Maeka corrected, waggling a finger.

"You stole my gun," Eisuke mumbled.

"No. I'm only holding onto it for safe-keeping. You'll get it back when this conversation is over… I don't want you shooting me. I'm already injured as it is," she said with a smirk. Eisuke finally took in the white gauze around Maeka's right arm. Maeka tilted her head away from the school. "Let's go somewhere else. The school has a Japanese program right? We don't really want to be overheard."

"You expect me to follow you around?" Eisuke asked incredulously.

"No," Maeka answered immediately. "_I'm _going to follow _you_. You probably stay around here, don't you? Since your only living relative is in Japan."

"You sure know a lot about me," Eisuke muttered. Nevertheless, he grabbed the straps of his backpack and left the school grounds, Maeka following several feet behind at a leisurely pace. Reaching the main road, Eisuke jumped into a taxi that was waiting near the school, Maeka still behind him. Giving the thief-in-disguise a strange look, the driver pulled away from the curb and merged onto the road. Ten minutes later, Eisuke had paid the driver and entered a condominium building, taking an elevator to the eighth floor. Just as Eisuke was exiting the elevator, his foot caught onto the small gap between elevator and hall and the teen pitched forward.

Maeka darted out of the elevator and grabbed Eisuke around the waist, ducking in order to avoid a flailing arm. "Wow, you really are clumsy," she remarked with a smirk as she let him regain his own balance.

"Urusai," Eisuke muttered. "Just don't try anything funny." Maeka shrugged in reply. Sighing, Eisuke led the thief down the hall and to the third door on the left, unlocking it and entering.

Maeka entered behind the teen and looked around the condo, finding herself staring at the kitchen garbage bin. "Can you not cook yourself a decent meal?" She asked, motioning towards the heap of Top Ramen bags.

"It's the only remotely Asian thing I can cook without worrying about burning anything," Eisuke mumbled. He deposited his backpack on the couch in the small living room then turned, expecting to find Maeka right behind him. His jaw dropped when he caught her digging through the refrigerator and freezer, pulling out seemingly random items and placing them on the counter in front of her. "Oi! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"Making some decent food for you," Maeka answered. "Is that so wrong? I'm not stealing anything and you don't have any use for them if you can't cook. Besides, it's _something _I can do in return if you decide to help us."

"You keep saying 'us,' who exactly is _in _this 'us'?"

"At the moment, Kaitou KID and I," Maeka said, standing up and searching the kitchen for pots and pans. Finding one of suitable size, she turned on the oven and spread cooking oil across the pan. "Although we're hoping to find others who will help us. Kaitou is taking this time to track down some of these people while I'm here asking for your help."

"You must have a list of potential helpers…" Eisuke began. "Who are they?"

Maeka glanced behind her at the teen briefly before she turned back to the pan and began tossing ingredients into it. "At the moment, we wish to recruit Hattori Heiji, Hakuba Saguru, Kazuki Kasuma, Edogawa Conan, the FBI officers after the Organization, several Division One members, including Megure-keibu and some men… and women of his division, and you, Hondou Eisuke."

"I understand why you'd ask the last two… and the first two are famous detectives if I remember correctly but Conan-kun… _oh!_ Never mind… I forgot about his…" Eisuke trailed off.

"Predicament?" Maeka offered. "Yeah. He's an important asset… not to mention him being Kudo Shinichi in disguise, yet another famous and talented detective."

"So you know about that…?"

"Of course. One has to know one's enemies, ne?" Maeka grinned back at the teen. "Although, compared to the Organization, Tantei-kun's definitely not an enemy."

"…Who was that third person?" Eisuke asked after a while, frowning as he did so.

"Kazuki Kasuma?" Maeka rummaged around for soy sauce and other seasonings as she answered. "She moved from America to Japan about six months ago and she also has ties to the Organization. She's also a good friend of Holmes… I mean Hakuba Saguru. The Hakuba family took care of her after a tragedy befell her and her family."

"A tragedy? What kind of tragedy?" Eisuke asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

"I may look into the background of my 'enemies' but I am not one to divulge said background. If you wish to find that out, then return with me to Japan where you can properly meet her and ask her questions to your heart's desire… granted she'll actually _answer_ them." Maeka turned off the stove and transferred the pan's contents to a container she found in a nearby drawer. Maeka turned around and regarded Eisuke, "So would you like to return to Japan and help us?"

"Well, if it'll help get rid of those men in black then… I suppose I will," Eisuke replied.

"Then pack up," Maeka said, placing a lid on the container and sliding it down the kitchen table towards Eisuke. "I'll have a friend of mine pick us up and take us over there."

* * *

Osaka, Japan  
Hattori Residence  
December 6, 7:31 AM

Unbuttoning the top of his gakuran, Hattori ran a hand through his hair. He could hear his parents moving around downstairs, preparing for the labors of the day. The dark-skinned detective couldn't help jumping when he heard a loud rapping on his bedroom window. Looking over, Hattori noticed _Kaitou KID_, of all people, outside his window, sporting a lopsided grin. Frowning and getting a bad feeling, Hattori went against his better judgment and opened the window, allowing KID to slip into his room. "W'at 'r' ya doin' 'ere KID?!"

KID placed a finger against his mouth, "Shhh. Keep your voice down, your parents are still here, aren't they?"

"I'll repeat m'self: w'at 'r' ya doin' 'ere?"

"We're preparing for a big battle. And your assistance is essential," KID answered, bowing low.

"W'at da hell 'r' ya on 'bout?"

"If you wish to find out, then tomorrow, come to Tokyo… specifically, the address in this envelope and Mage and I will explain everything," KID proffered a white envelope bearing KID and Mage's combined caricatures and extended it towards Hattori. Gingerly, Hattori accepted the envelope but before he could ask any further questions, KID had jumped out his window and disappeared. Hattori curiously opened the envelope and read the contents.

"…What da _hell?!"_

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Teitan Elementary School  
December 6, 3:20 PM

"Are you excited about this new project?" Ayumi was asking Conan as the Shonen Tantei exited the school.

"Eh? Oh… yeah, it looks really interesting," Conan answered with a little laugh.

"We should do one as a group!" Genta exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air.

"What do _you _think, Haibara-san?" Mitsuhiko asked the shrunken scientist.

"Well, it would certainly be easier to do it as a group," Haibara murmured.

"Yosh! Kimari da!" Genta exclaimed. As the group reached the gates of the school, Genta, who was leading the others, deflated.

"Ah! Shinichi-oniisan!" Ayumi greeted. Both Conan and Haibara whipped their heads to the figure Ayumi was regarding. Conan's jaw dropped.

"Hey kids!" 'Shinichi' replied. "Can I borrow Conan-kun for a bit?"

"Conan-kun?" Ayumi turned and faced him. "Should we wait?"

"No, it's okay. You guys go on ahead," Conan said. "Shinichi-niichan will bring me back… ne?" Conan sent a carefully hidden glare to the fake Shinichi.

"Of course! Shall we be off then?" 'Shinichi' asked, beginning down the street. Conan followed.

As soon as they were far enough from the school, Conan regarded the imposter. "What do you want KID?"

"Blunt as always," KID replied. "But how could you be so certain that it'd be me. Mage could very well disguise as you."

"Only _you'd_ have the gall to masquerade as me in public," Conan deadpanned. "Now back to my question: what do you want?"

"We're starting a war. And I think you would like to help, Tantei-kun," KID answered cryptically.

"What?"

"Stick around that professor's home tomorrow and you'll find out." With that, KID shed his 'Shinichi' outfit and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

* * *

Over Japan  
Private Jet  
December 6, 5:09 PM

"Will you answer my first question already?" Eisuke huffed in exasperation.

"I can't tell you that," Maeka answered, rummaging through a bag in the top compartment of the jet. "If I told you who owns this jet, I'd be endangering my contact. You could go to the police telling them about the ones aiding and abetting a criminal and that will not bode well with me or my contact."

"You can't even give me a small hint? One that won't give away anything?"

"If that was the case, I could only tell you that they are very rich… but that's pretty obvious from the fact that you're riding in one of their private jets," Maeka shrugged, pulling out a black bag.

"'One?'" Eisuke quoted. "Are you saying they have more than one _private jet_?"

"Or helicopter, or boat, or train," Maeka supplied. "Who knows _exactly_ what I ever say?"

"…What are you doing?" Eisuke asked as he watched Maeka pull out several brushes and various kinds of makeup.

"Man, you are nosy," Maeka said with a grin. "But if you must know, I am altering my face. Seeing a light blonde Japanese on the streets might gain some strange looks… even if there are plenty of people who dye their hair here."

"In _front_ of me?" Eisuke asked incredulously.

"So? I'm not stripping if that's what you're getting at." Maeka watched as Eisuke turned beet red before smirking and pulling off her blonde wig, revealing a black wig cap which hindered Eisuke from discerning Maeka's natural hair color. She replaced the wig with a dark brown, shoulder-length wig then began swiftly applying makeup, subtly changing her facial features. Finally, she popped in two contacts, changing her eye color from blue to brown. "We'll be landing soon, so I suggest you take a seat and buckle yourself up," Maeka notified the teen who was standing in the spacious aisle a meter away from her. From another bag, Maeka pulled out a pair of dark blue jeans and a short sleeve shirt, walking towards the cockpit. Curiously, Eisuke watched the thief knock on the door as she tossed the clothes she grabbed into the restroom. "How much longer?" She asked through the door. Receiving a reply Eisuke couldn't hear, she disappeared behind the door of the restroom, only to reappear minutes later, holding her old outfit. She looked over at Eisuke. "You've got a little less than five minutes to secure yourself in a seat before we descend." Eisuke scrambled for the nearest seat, buckling himself up as Maeka did the same.

'Japan, here I come,' Eisuke found himself thinking as he felt the jet drop downwards.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Jodie Starling's Apartment  
December 6, 6:41 PM

Jodie Starling was thoroughly confused when someone rang her doorbell. Was she supposed to meet with someone? Nevertheless, the FBI agent strode over to the door and opened it up. She was greeted by two unfamiliar visitors, a male and a female. The male was wearing jeans and a black sweatshirt, a black baseball cap sitting atop his head. His companion was wearing dark blue jeans and a short sleeved shirt, a denim jacket slung around her arm. Her dark brown hair fell to her shoulders and she was wearing a navy blue hat. "Can I… help you?" Jodie asked the newcomers.

"Yes, in fact, you can," the male spoke up.

"Do you know these people?" the female asked then. The two of them then held up four photos and Jodie's eyes widened in recognition. She quickly pulled the two teenagers—they couldn't be much older than that—inside her apartment.

"What the hell is this about?" Jodie demanded. How could she not recognize the woman who murdered her father and two men of the same criminal group? The other two photos the male had held up bore no resemblance to anyone she knew but she didn't care. "Why do you have those photos?"

"Before we explain ourselves, could you contact your FBI companions?" the female asked. "And please don't be alarmed, KID and I did quite a bit of research, which would explain our knowledge of you and your career."

"'KID'?" Jodie quoted, shocked.

"Like I said, please call your companions first," the female repeated. "We'll explain when they arrive."

"Jodie-kun, is something wrong?" James Black asked as Jodie let him and Andre Camel into her apartment.

"No, nothing's wrong," Jodie assured. "However, _I _don't even know what's going on. My guests wouldn't explain anything until I called you two over."

"Guests?" Andre asked in his gruff voice.

"Y-yes." Jodie led the two FBI officers into the main room where said guests were sitting on a couch. "Kaitou KID and Masked Magician."

"_What?!"_ the two of them exclaimed.

KID and Mage stood and faced the three FBI officers. "Or you could refer to us as Kaitou and Maeka," Mage—or Maeka—suggested. "Quite less conspicuous than saying 'KID' or 'Mage,' ne?"

"What is this about?" James demanded.

"We're planning something big and we need your help," Kaitou answered, showing James the four photos they brought with them. "Snake, Crocodile, Gin, Vodka, and Vermouth. We're looking to takedown their Organization."

"If you can, please go to this address tomorrow." Maeka extended a white envelope towards the FBI agents. "We will explain in more detail tomorrow… since it would be better to explain it once to everyone." With that said, the two thieves opened the door to Jodie's balcony and jumped off, activating their gliders and flying away.

"Now comes the hard part…" Kaitou murmured.

"Breaking into the MPD," Maeka finished, steering her glider towards Chiyoda City.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan  
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department  
December 6, 7:38 PM

Megure sighed, setting the report he was reading on his desk. He glanced up at the clock in the room. "Eh… Takagi-kun, have you finished the paperwork for that recent case?"

"Huh?" Takagi looked up from his desk. "Oh uh, yes! It's right here!" Takagi grabbed a folder off his desk and scurried over to Megure's desk. Before the inspector could take a look at the file, however, smoke filled the room. When the smoke cleared, the occupants—only about five or six people—could feel a constant wave of cold air.

"Hello officers~!" the familiar tones of Kaitou KID rang out.

"KID!" Megure exclaimed. "And Mage!" The two thieves were perched on the window sill next to Megure's desk.

"We'll be swift so your officers can get back to work," KID said, jumping off the sill, Mage doing the same immediately after.

"We have information about a criminal organization that we would like to share with you tomorrow," Mage continued. "Simply go to this address tomorrow… oh, and only bring your most trusted officers." Mage extended an envelope towards Megure and bowed, right foot extended. Before Megure could respond, KID and Mage had disappeared.

'What the hell?'

**Final Notes: That concludes part one of the Men in Black Arc! Please R&R~ I want to hear your opinions~ (Even if it's simply some grammatical corrections~ I'm sure you can include some comments as well)**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "If a **_**criminal**_** already knows, then maybe telling the authorities would be fine…"**_


	31. Meetings (25)

**A/N: Part two of the Men in Black Arc! Here's the other half of the double update~ Enjoy~  
****Warnings: Teamwork (not that that's a bad thing :D)  
****Acknowledgments: ...  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): We're nearing the end… :D**

**Today's quote is:** **"Now, let's pick up socks from Mr. Haster's mailbox! That's one of the weirdest sentences I've said."—Mari-chan**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Meetings

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
December 7, 3:31 PM

"Kasuma didn't come to school today either," Ran murmured.

"Yeah, what's wrong with her?" Sonoko asked as she ascended the stairs alongside Ran, Conan, and Haibara. "We've barely seen her."

"Haibara, do you know anything?" Conan asked the shrunken scientist.

Haibara shook her head. "Every day, she's been leaving before I wake up and returns around midnight or later. The day she first started this routine, she left a note on the refrigerator saying she'd be leaving for work."

"Work? When does the Mega Mall open?"

"Normally? Around seven or eight, but with Christmas approaching, that has slowly been pushed to an earlier time," Haibara mumbled.

"Oh, Ran-neechan? Can I go to Agasa-hakase's place?" Conan asked, turning around to face Ran.

"Sure," Ran answered with a smile. "Oh, and if you happen to see Kasuma on your way over, can you ask her where she's been lately?"

"Sure," Conan nodded. Dropping off his backpack by his bedroom, Conan ran out of the apartment and down the stairs.

"So…?" Haibara's voice floated in from behind him. "What's your reason for heading over to Hakase's?"

"Eh…? You're coming too?" Haibara gave him a look clearly saying 'Of course I am.' "Well, if you must know, yesterday I was told to hang around Hakase's place today."

"Hmm… so you too?"

Conan stopped short, whirling around to face Haibara. "Wait, what do you mean 'you too'?!"

Haibara dug through her pockets and pulled a small white note. "This told Kasuma and I to head over to Hakase's house as soon as possible. There's no signature," Haibara added as Conan took the note and examined it. "However, I haven't seen Kasuma as of late so I don't know if she's seen this or not."

"Should we try calling her?" Conan asked as he and Haibara continued walking towards Agasa's home.

"Don't bother," Haibara stated bluntly. "I've been trying for the past couple days but she's turned it off. And she hasn't bothered to call me back. She's completely AWOL right now." Haibara pulled out her keychain and, using the key she still held onto, opened the door to the professor's home. The two 'children' were suddenly bombarded with a plethora of voices.

"I guess Kasuma-chan didn't get the note," Conan murmured as he swept his eyes around the living room, taking in all the faces.

"Cool Kid!"

"Eh? Jodie-sensei?!" Conan exclaimed as the FBI agent ran up to him.

"**Hi~!"** Jodie greeted. "There are a lot of people gathered here, ne? Lots of familiar faces?" Just as she said this, there was a loud crash. Conan looked over at the source to find—of all people—_Eisuke_ lying amongst several cardboard boxes, rubbing his behind.

"Eisuke-niichan!" Conan ran over to the teen.

"Itte-te-te—" Eisuke grumbled, sitting up and fumbling around all the boxes. "Uh… hi Conan-kun!"

"Why are you back in Japan?" Conan asked the teen.

"Probably for the same reason you're in this room," Eisuke answered, carefully backing away from the boxes lying on the floor.

"Conan-kun, why are you here?" Sato asked from her position on the couch.

"Uhh… well…" Conan drew circles in the floor with his foot, putting up a front of innocence. "Because KID told me to…?"

"So I'm not da only one?" Hattori murmured. "Dat's good!"

"Hat—Er… Heiji-niichan?!" Conan finally took in the Osakan detective's presence.

"I think we can_ all_ assume that either KID or Mage brought us here," Hakuba said calmly from his seat on the couch. Hattori growled at the British detective but otherwise did nothing else. Conan ran over to the couch and took a seat next to Sato, Haibara pulling a chair up next to him.

The people gathered in the living room of one Agasa Hiroshi all jerked their heads up when they heard a loud rapping on the window, expecting an ambush of sorts. What they were met with instead were two figures in black perched on the window sill expectantly waiting for said window to open. Conan, after recovering from the initial shock, sighed and moved to open the window. The figures in black slipped in and the window slid closed soon after. "You know, you could have used the door like normal people." Conan stated, returning to his seat on the couch.

"In case you haven't noticed," the figure wearing his omni-present monocle, otherwise known as Kaitou KID, began. "We are _far_ from normal."

"More on the brink of insanity," His companion, Masked Magician, finished in a voice wavering delicately between a male and female tone. She tugged her black cap lower, shadowing her half-mask even further, her baggy shirt and pants hanging loosely at her sides. "It was either the full cooperation of the window or the Professor here was going to be acquainted with a good sized hole in his window. We chose the less destructive path... well, save for the poor flowers KID crushed."

"How was I supposed to know there were flowers there?! I swear they weren't there earlier!" KID retorted.

"I thought you normally scanned the area before treading through unfamiliar territory," Mage responded, raising an invisible eyebrow at KID. KID paused to formulate his comeback.

"In any case," Inspector Megure started, diverting the conversation. "Why are we here?"

KID's monocle caught the light and shrouded the eye hiding behind it, "We have a problem that we can't solve on our own. We needed to find people to assist us. Mage and I are not planning to solely rely on the single spy in this syndicate."

"Syn…di…cate? You don't mean…?" Conan stuttered.

"That's exactly what KID means, Tantei-kun. We want to take down a wide-spread crime organization." Mage found a chair and settled herself in it, looking at Conan as she spoke.

"How do you play in…? With this organization I mean," Hakuba asked. "You must have a reason to want to take down an organization on your side of the law."

"_Don't _put us on _Their_ side! _They_ are _nothing_ like us," KID very nearly exclaimed. He took a quiet, deep breath before continuing on a steadier level. "Both of us were directly…" KID and Mage exchanged looks. After Mage nodded, KID continued. "…affected by their… existence. Details _may_ follow but right now, that's irrelevant."

"What _is_ relevant…" Mage picked up where KID left off, "is that there are two segments to this group: Project Waykamatayan and Project Ubique. Waykamatayan works under animal codenames, Snake for instance. It's a really… condensed group. There aren't as many in Waykamatayan as there are in Ubique. The word 'waykamatayan' is Visayan for 'immortality' which is the goal of the group."

"More specifically… this is their goal," KID said, pulling the latest heist target out of thin air and setting it on the table. Everyone, save KID and Mage, leaned in to get a closer look at the pink-orange sapphire. To answer their unasked question of 'What is it?,' KID replied, "It's a gemstone called Pandora that's a doublet and glows red under moonlight. And when a certain comet, the Volley Comet to be specific, passes over… supposedly Pandora cries tears of immortality." KID reclaimed the rare sapphire, stowing it away in one of his many hidden pockets, "Whether it really cries tears of immortality or not, Waykamatayan is willing to kill for it."

"And the second group?" Sato spoke up, raising an eyebrow at the two phantom thieves.

"Right. The second group, Ubique, works under alcoholic codenames…" Mage spared a glance at the shrunken Kudo Shinichi, "like Gin and Vodka." Conan stiffened but Mage plowed on. "'Ubique' is Latin for 'everywhere.' This group is exactly like its name… both in regions and specialties. Members of Ubique work _anywhere_ but whatever they do goes, in the end, to help Waykamatayan. An example would be the creation of APTX-4869." This time, it was Haibara who stiffened. "Originally, it wasn't supposed to kill. The scientists that first worked on it didn't intend for it to kill. It was a derivate of Pandora's ability to become immortal."

KID picked up the story, "At one point… maybe twenty years ago… the Organization had Pandora. They may have lost it soon after finding it but they were able to extract some samples from the gem. How? I have no idea. The samples were then given to Vermouth who, in turn, gave them to Montrose and Merlot, the scientists Mage mentioned." Haibara's expression softened ever so slightly into sympathy… or was it empathy?

"They didn't get far however," Mage continued. "Because after years of working on APTX, Montrose and Merlot found out what _They_ were planning. At that time, Montrose and Merlot were the heads of the APTX project. They didn't know what the samples they had been given were. They were only asked to duplicate the substance as best they could. After learning about Pandora, they destroyed the samples and their work before disappearing altogether. Akvavit and Cachaca were then forced to take over the project. I'm not sure about the time line after this but I _do_ know that Akvavit and Cachaca were eventually killed and Sherry took over the project. Somewhere before Sherry's command and after Akvavit and Cachaca's command, the information warped into a poison. A rare side effect of the poison was the reduction of a person's age."

Conan sighed deeply, "Which is where _I _would come in but this is interesting… I want to hear what else you know."

Mage smirked, "My knowledge of this doesn't go much farther. Although…" there was a pregnant pause as Mage mulled over what to say next. "Irrelevant it may be but I'm throwing it out there. Vermouth aka Sharon Vineyard aka Chris Vineyard is the only person who has been affected by the Tears of Pandora."

"So… Translation: She's immortal…?" FBI agent Jodie Starling announced, looking to Mage for confirmation.

"Correct."

"And why are we _just now _hearing about this?" Megure asked.

"Because they kill anyone who knows of their existence." Everyone was surprised to hear those words exiting a child's mouth, even more so when they realized it was Haibara Ai who spoke.

"So then… how do you know?" Takagi asked, still trying to wrap the concept around his brain, "And you two," he pointed at the two criminals in the room, "If they kill anyone who knows about them, how are you still alive?"

KID and Mage exchanged glances. "Because… technically I _am_ dead." KID answered.

"And I 'died' two years ago. Holmes…" Hakuba responded with a quiet 'Yes.' Mage slipped into English, **"Do you remember the explosion on February 14, 2007?"** She repeated the sentence in Japanese.

Hakuba nodded, "It was during the standard chase. You slipped away supposedly in an officer's uniform when there was an explosion in a room on one of the higher floors. We evacuated the people in the building and did a head count. We didn't think anyone was on that floor because everyone was accounted for but after examining the rubble, some officers found a body charred past recognition. We all assumed it was you and you never showed your face in Europe since."

"If you had conducted or _attempted_ to conduct tests on that body, you would have found out that it was a dummy but I guess you all just assumed it was me because everyone else was safe. And if the bomb wasn't so badly destroyed like it was, you would have found several cut wires. That was all part of my trick. I went into hiding for a year after that before resurfacing in America. Of course, by now, the Black Organization knows we're both alive…Now I believe there's at _least_ one more person who 'died.'"

Conan sighed and leaned back in his seat, rubbing his forehead. "Edogawa Conan is an identity manifested by the rare side effect of APTX-4869. I caught Gin and Vodka in the act of blackmailing a businessman and was fed the poison when they found me. It was supposed to kill me and leave no traces when an autopsy was performed but instead, I shrunk." Silence ensued shortly after.

"And to think the rare side effect doesn't seem so rare. It should have killed me, that's what I wanted," Haibara whispered, her voice coming across as much louder due to the prolonged silence.

"Suicide?" Megure gasped.

"I guess this is Kami's way of punishing me for what I've done." Haibara smirked.

"Oi, oi," Conan whispered, loud enough for only Haibara to hear, "I thought you didn't want to give away information about _Them_… _especially_ about yourself."

"If a _criminal_ already knows, then maybe telling the authorities would be fine… unless," Haibara raised her voice and looked at KID and Mage briefly, "Are there listening devices in here?"

Mage smirked, "Would we really have held a gathering here if there were listening devices? No, we searched the place before coming in, inside included, before striking a conversation."

Haibara turned to Conan, "There, it should be fine, ne? You've already told them about yourself… if they're going to help out, they should receive the whole story." In a louder voice, Haibara reluctantly began with, "Before becoming Haibara Ai, I was known in the organization as Sherry...the person who created APTX-4869 succeeding Akvavit and Cachaca and Montrose and Merlot. When they killed my sister, I stopped research on the project until I was given an answer. When they didn't comply and instead handcuffed me to a pipe in an unused room, I consumed my own poison in hopes that I would die before they did it themselves. I shrunk instead and was able to escape via air vent/garbage hatch. I then found my way here where Agasa-hakase took me in."

"This is a dangerous group, but we need all the help we can get." Mage looked at Conan expectantly.

"I _really_ want my old body back so you should know my answer."

"And we've been hunting the organization for years; the FBI is definitely on your side," FBI agent James Black added.

"If shortie here's gonna get involved 'den you've got me too." Hattori answered, ruffling Conan's hair.

"Since I now know of their existence, I supposed I should pitch in. What's the worst that can happen?" Hakuba pointed out.

"You could die," Haibara deadpanned. Hakuba sweat-dropped and diverted his attention elsewhere.

"You know my answer from when you first approached me, Maeka-san," Eisuke muttered.

"And Division One is behind you… even if the people we're behind are thieves," Megure exclaimed. "We are not going to let more people get hurt by this syndicate."

"Ah Keibu," KID addressed the inspector. "Be careful who you ask to help. The Black Organization has spies in the force."

"That's another thing," Mage started. "_Their_ spies are everywhere. Which means this whole ordeal stays a secret. The less people that know, the better… Ne, James-san, how fast can you get your hands on some high-tech equipment, preferably FBI equipment of course."

"Hm, two to three days at most," The FBI agent responded.

"That's good… I'll need some equipment as soon as possible."

"And I might need to work with the Professor on some fast-spreading, long-lasting sleeping gas," KID added with a huge grin. "We could integrate them into Tantei-kun's gadgets… Oh, and maybe make some collapsible gas masks."

"A little too excited there kaitou," Mage said, patting KID's shoulder.

"So, why isn't Kasuma-chan here? She's involved in the Organization too, didn't you ask her?" Conan asked, not catching the pointed stare Haibara was giving him.

"Well, Tantei-chan is one of the reasons we gathered this information. Especially the details on the group," KID shrugged.

"Kasuma's supposed to be here? Where is she?" Hakuba asked, peering intently at the table in front of him, not wanting to glance at the criminals in the room. He wanted to add 'Why does _she_ have ties to this dangerous organization?' but refrained.

"Working… Actually, I let her bug me so she could hear the conversation." There was a wave of disbelief that washed over the group gathered in the Professor's living room. "Only for the meeting of course," Mage added, catching the incredulous looks on their faces.

KID stood, stretching his limbs. "Well, now that we've broken the ice… Oh, and don't be alarmed if either one of us pops up here randomly. This will require a lot of teamwork after all." KID walked back over to the window they entered and opened it, the two thieves slipping out and disappearing over the wall.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
December 10, 4:27 PM

"What do you have there?" Haibara asked Conan. Conan was seated in the couch of the Kazuki library, eyes intently focused on the small stack of papers in his lap.

Conan glanced up at the scientist. "I asked Hakase to make copies of the blueprints of the items he and KID are constructing. From the looks of it, they're making headsets with collapsible masks. Mage has been stopping by quite a bit as well… from what I could pick up, she's synchronizing the FBI equipment signals with the signals from my gadgets—oh, shit!"

"What?" Haibara quirked an eyebrow.

"That completely slipped from my mouth… I wasn't thinking," Conan mumbled, smacking his forehead. "Haibara, please ignore any pronouns I use in regards to Mage."

Haibara shrugged. "Fine… Oh, and if you want to catch Kasuma before she disappears again, I suggest you move _now_. She was on the second floor last I checked."

"Really?" Conan asked, jumping off the couch. "Then I'll try and meet up with her." Conan set the blueprints face down on the table and ran towards the stairs. He slowed down when he neared the top of the staircase. Taking his time, Conan walked past each door, listening carefully for any sound of movement. Just as he passed the fifth room, Conan caught movement out of the corner of his eye. The door to the fifth room was ajar. 'If I remember correctly, this is the wine cellar,' Conan thought as he finally caught sight of Kasuma at the far end of the room. She was holding one of the numerous wines in the room. Behind her, Conan could see a small table with two empty wine glasses on it, two bottles sitting near the glasses. Before Conan could use his glasses to zoom in on the table, a hand grabbed his arm, yanking him away from the room and into another, another hand covering his mouth so he wouldn't make too much noise.

"Don't worry, Conan-kun… it's me," Conan's 'kidnapper' released him and Conan spun around.

"Hakuba-niichan!" Conan exclaimed, shocked.

"Shh." Hakuba set a finger against his mouth. "Kasuma's got pretty good ears. She could hear you. And you don't have to continue calling me 'niichan.' You admitted yourself that you're not as young as you look."

"What are you doing here, Hakuba-san?" Conan asked, lowering his voice.

"Looking for Kasuma," Hakuba said with a shrug. "I heard she's been skipping school in favor of working at the mall. She wasn't there when I asked Kaemon-san earlier today so the most likely location after the mall was at her home. I'm glad I caught up to her… though if I approach her now, I might end up in a pretty bad condition."

"What do you mean?" Conan asked, glancing at the wall that connected the current room they were in—a bedroom—to the wine cellar.

"She gets rather… unstable, I guess is the right word, at this time of the year. If I were to approach her… especially when she's off in her own world like she is now, I'd have no idea how she'd act," Hakuba explained. "I learned _that_ the first year she stayed with us… though it wasn't a _bad_ reaction, per se, it still wasn't favorable."

"Shouldn't we try and alert Kasuma-nee—ah, I mean Kasuma-chan that we're here? If we don't, she might disappear again before we can talk with her."

"I suppose you're right," Hakuba murmured, standing up. "Then shall we go?" Hakuba opened the door and walked into the hallway, pausing outside the wine cellar. Kasuma was still inside; Conan could see her leaning over the table, head down. Hakuba knocked lightly on the door three times. Kasuma jerked her head up and around, jerking it back to its former position when she saw who was at the door. As Hakuba and Conan walked into the cellar, Kasuma swiftly returned the three bottles into three slots behind the table, turning around to face them when she finished. "Are… you alright?" Hakuba began hesitantly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Kasuma murmured.

"Are you really?" Hakuba pressed, doubt coloring his voice. Conan glanced behind the teen at the table where he could see dots of darker color than the table near the edge of the table.

'Was she… crying?' Conan asked himself, attempting to find the bottles Kasuma had pulled out but to no avail. "I don't believe you, Kasuma-chan," he said bluntly. Hakuba's expression seemed to agree with him.

"Of course you don't, Conan-kun," Kasuma said with a small laugh. "How long were you two out there?"

"I've been in the neighboring bedroom for the past ten minutes," Hakuba answered. "I found Conan-kun walking by a few minutes ago."

"Kasuma-chan…? Have you seen what KID and Hakase are making?" Conan asked her.

"Not that I know of," Kasuma answered. "I've only really been meeting with Mage… or, rather, _she_ meets with _me_."

"'She'…?" Hakuba quoted. "Do you know Mage's gender?"

"Oh, sorry!" Kasuma said then. "I keep thinking of Mage as female since Mage always approaches me in a female guise."

'Not that that's _wrong_,' Conan thought to himself.

"What has Mage been approaching you for?" Hakuba asked.

"Mostly for information about the Organization," Kasuma answered with a shrug. "But the most recent one was to ask me to use my parents' contacts to track down the owners of Amaraniya. KID and Mage plan to create a fake Amaraniya and place a note in the jewel which explains, vaguely, why they're holding onto the jewel. They're going to return the 'jewel,' which will hopefully lower the guard of the Organization. Mage said that Snake was pretty confident about Amaraniya being Pandora but if the jewel is supposedly returned, he wouldn't put so much focus on tracking down KID or Mage."

"Are they _ever_ gonna return the jewel?" Conan asked.

Kasuma shook her head. "Mage told me this: they're going to destroy Amaraniya and, after this whole takedown, KID's gonna put more effort and create and more convincing replica to give the family. I don't know if KID's gonna _tell_ the family that this more accurate counterfeit is indeed that but… I guess we'll deal with that when we cross that bridge… Not to be pessimistic, but it's not even guaranteed we'll successfully take _Them_ down."

"You mentioned your parents' contacts," Hakuba began. "Did they _really_ know that many people? Are the contacts KID and Mage have not suitable?"

"I guess not," Kasuma murmured. "Or maybe their strong suit isn't in that kind of tracking." Kasuma glanced at her watch. "I guess I should get back to the mall. Kaemon-san wants me to work the night shift," Kasuma mumbled as she grabbed the two glasses on the table and placed them in the small sink in the room.

"Wait!" Hakuba's exclamation stopped the teen. "Will you at least tell me what you've been eating?"

"Food, of course," Kasuma replied, giving a small smile. "You worry too much about me… Saguru." With that, Kasuma walked out of the wine cellar and disappeared down the hall.

"She… actually used my given name…"

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
December 11, 12:05 AM

Haibara was still up when she heard Kasuma enter the house, trying to be as quiet as possible. That plan had failed, however, as Winter and Neko ran down the stairs from Haibara's bedroom to their owner. Haibara smiled as she exited her room, watching Winter jump on Kasuma, which caused her to fall backwards, licking her face. Neko came up from behind, her front paws on Kasuma shoulder as she joined her larger companion. "Oi, oi, get off me," Kasuma whispered as she sat up, the two dogs jumping off her to avoid a collision. Kasuma shed her jacket and stowed it in the closet by the door, pulling out a maroon sweatshirt with a dragon on the front to replace it. Haibara stood quietly at the top of the stairs as Kasuma opened a drawer opposite the hallway closet, pulling out a pack of incense sticks. Haibara headed down the stairs and followed Kasuma into the library where she headed for the doors in the far left-hand corner which lead to the back yard. Haibara lingered by the doors as she watched Kasuma walk up to three upright stones in the yard, kneeling before them and opening the package of incense sticks. She placed one stick in the dirt in front of each stone and pulled a lighter from her pocket, lighting each of the sticks. She then placed her hands in her lap and bowed her head.

Haibara chose that time to walk up to Kasuma, kneeling next to her. Haibara caught Kasuma looking at her with widening eyes as the scientist pulled out six incense sticks and dug two in front of each stone. "One from me and one from Akemi," Haibara explained as she lit each stick.

Kasuma gave her a warm smile, gratitude clear from her expression. "Thank you." Winter and Neko trotted outside and sat down in between Haibara and Kasuma. The two were silent for several minutes as they each paid their respects.

"How often do you come out here?" Haibara almost whispered, taking note of the large amount of ashes in front of the stones.

"Every night," Kasuma murmured. "Since I can't be in America where they _really_ are, I come out here."

"I'm glad I didn't fall asleep right away," Haibara remarked, absentmindedly petting Neko, who was sitting closest to her. "I didn't even realize you set up a shrine out here."

Kasuma smiled. "It's a shame I can't make use of the shrine that was built on the actual site."

"…What?"

Kasuma stood up, slapping loose dirt off her jeans. Haibara followed her example and headed back inside with her. "A while ago, someone set up a traditional Japanese shrine near the remains of my old house," Kasuma explained, closing the doors behind her. "I haven't actually seen this shrine but apparently it's pretty small, Amunet almost missed it. I would say I don't know who set it up but that would be a lie. I have a pretty good idea." Kasuma led Haibara into the kitchen and began brewing some hot chocolate.

"Who?" Haibara asked, taking a seat at the table.

"It couldn't have been anyone except Vermouth," Kasuma answered. Haibara stiffened, eyes growing wide. "No one else knows about the place except my friends, Hakuba included… and, of course, the woman who burnt the place to the ground. Hakuba was in Japan at the time and Amunet, Crystal, and Rianna had no idea about it until Amunet drove down there. That only leaves Vermouth. Besides," Kasuma poured two cups of the now steaming cocoa. "She's the only one who could possibly have a motive for setting up such a shrine… and the only one with the _time_ to set it up."

Haibara didn't respond, taking small sips from her mug. "Oh… that reminds me, Mage dropped by asking about where the information about APTX-4869 would be within the Organization's database."

"Hmm… If memory serves, isn't there a hidden file that stores all the scientific projects the Organization has worked on?"

Haibara nodded. "It's heavily coded and protected by several viruses and firewalls. If Mage is planning on obtaining that information, it'll be very difficult."

"On the bright side, if it _is_ obtained, you'll be able to create an antidote for Shinichi-kun and he'll be able to return to his normal life," Kasuma remarked with a smile.

Haibara nodded slowly, pressing her mug against her mouth as she stared at the table. 'And he can finally be free from the grip the Organization has on him.'

**Final Notes: Wow. I finished this chapter in two days… that's an all-time record. (I guess part of that was because I had a **_**very**_** good chunk of this already written out… :P)  
A;LSKDFJASLKDF This chapter reveals quite a bit... including much of my headcanon... I hope it all makes sense... As a note, I will probably continue to update un-BETAed chapters periodically. Honestly speaking, I haven't worked that much on this story and I'm greatly ashamed of that fact *lazycry* BUT I am about 10 chapters ahead of myself so it's not as bad. I'm currently stuck at a very important reveal in the story which is why nothing else has been written... because I don't know how to go about it. I'll figure it out eventually... (unless Hetalia completely invades my mind and lessens my interest in Detective Conan, God forbid...)**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Lately he's been very antsy… Today, I finally decided to follow him."**_


	32. Let's Take A Break (26)

**A/N: Part three of the Men in Black Arc!  
****Warnings: Invasion by (****This Name Has Been Censored… By Azarath235****) :D  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): I love breaks, breaks are so nice and relaxing and you can get stuff done you normally couldn't…**

**Today's quote is: ****"Okay, who put the lamb under the bed? …It's supposed to be under the chair!"—Mari-chan**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Let's Take A Break

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Streets of Beika  
December 14, 3:31 PM

"So why didn't Kazuha-chan come with you?" Ran asked Hattori as she, Conan, and Hattori walked around the city.

Hattori shrugged. "Kazuha 'as an aikido tournament comin' up. She's been practicin' at 'r school's dojo lately."

"How long are you staying here?" Ran asked another question. "You've already been here for almost a week."

"I don' kno'… I packed 'nuff clothes fer a week 'n' I've been stayin' at Kudo's place but it probably won' be much long'a." Hattori snuck a glance at Conan who, in turn, shrugged. All of a sudden, Ran cried out. "Oi, Neechan, ya alrigh'?!" Hattori asked as he noticed her lying on the ground.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was go—Ran-chan?"

"Aoko-chan!" Ran exclaimed, taking in the navy blue-clad teenager. Ran helped Aoko get back on her feet. "What are you doing over here?"

"I was following Hakuba-kun," Aoko explained. "Lately he's been very antsy. Immediately after school ends, Hakuba-kun's the first one to leave the school and every time I pass by the train station on my way home, I always see him getting on a train to Beika. Today, I finally decided to follow him." Aoko looked around the street. "And now I lost him."

"Was he heading that way?" Conan pointed down the street to his right.

Aoko nodded. "That's how I ran into Ran-chan. I was crossing the street when you guys were walking up. Damn, he's a fast runner."

"Ne, Ran-neechan," Conan tugged on Ran's light blue skirt. "Isn't that the direction of the Beika Mega Mall?"

"It is," Ran nodded.

"Maybe that's where Hakuba-niichan's going!" Conan suggested brightly. "That's where Kasuma-neechan works after all!"

"Shall we all head over there?" Ran asked.

"Oi," Hattori leaned down to level himself with Conan. "Why would dat British prick be rushin' ov'r to da mall?"

"It's probably something about Kasuma-chan," Conan answered, keeping his voice low. "A few days ago, I found him keeping an eye on Kasuma-chan in her house. It seems she gets pretty unstable around this time of the year."

"Oh yea,'" Hattori mumbled. "He mention'd som'thin' 'bout Decemb'r durin' da WLH." The four of them ran through the mall entrance, pausing to look around for the British detective. The first one they found, however, was not Hakuba, but Kasuma. The teen was spinning a lanyard with tons of oddly shaped keys around her index finger. She was wearing cargo pants and a dark blue shirt and had her long hair tied back in a ponytail. Their search for the antsy detective didn't last long for the three teenagers and shrunken teenager found Hakuba running after her, slowing down when he was at her side. "Found 'em," Hattori muttered.

"Hakuba-kun, Kasuma-chan!" Aoko called out to them. Hakuba stopped and turned to face them while Kasuma continued on her way after a glance at the one who had called her.

"Nakamori-san? What are you doing here?"

"Following _you!_" Aoko nearly shouted. "I've been worried about you! You've been extremely antsy and you kept disappearing right after school in order to head over to Beika!"

"Well I'm sorry I've worried you, Nakamori-san," Hakuba said with a slight bow. "But I've been 'antsy' because I'm expecting something to happen and… **bloody **_**hell!**_** I **_**lost **_**her!"**

"Are you talking about Kasuma-neechan?" Conan asked. "I saw her walk into that hallway that leads to the restrooms!"

"Really? Thank you, Conan-kun," Hakuba replied, heading in the direction Conan pointed out. Having nothing else to do, the rest of the teenagers followed him.

"This mall is kinda like a maze," Aoko murmured as they turned a corner in the narrower passageway.

"That's why they put a bunch of directories around the mall!" Conan answered brightly, throwing his arms into the air.

"KASUMA!" Conan and the other three teenagers turned toward the voice. "Oi, shikari shite!"

"Kasuma-chan?!" Aoko joined Hakuba on the floor. "What happened?"

"Did she faint?" Ran asked then. Conan then noticed the lanyard Kasuma had been twirling lying centimeters away from the open door of the vending machine in front of the unconscious teen. Hakuba had his knee against the door, keeping it from swinging closed and hitting Kasuma as he shook the teen. A frustrated growl ripped through Hakuba's normally calm composure.

"You're _still_ doing it?!"

"What happened?" Aoko repeated.

"Nightmares will return full-force, she'll overwork herself, she'll skip school, she'll neglect her own nutrition—to the point that she'll faint like she just did, she'll even drink alcohol—granted it's only two or so glasses of wine. It is officially the worst week of the year. Not only for herself… She falls into this pattern every year."

"Kazuki-chan?" a male of about twenty approached the group. He was wearing black slacks, a white shirt, and had a dark blue apron wrapped around his waist. "Is she alright? What happened?"

"Do you work here?" Hakuba asked him. The man nodded in the affirmative. "Then could you possibly ask Kaemon-san if someone can take her place? Kasuma overworked herself… She'll be fine once she gets some rest." The man nodded and, after locking up the vending machine and picking up the forgotten lanyard, headed back the way he came.

Conan tugged on the sleeve of Hakuba's dark brown blazer. "Hakuba-niichan, should I call Agasa-hakase and have him take you and Kasuma-neechan to her house?"

"That would be nice," Hakuba nodded, picking up the fallen teen bridal style. "Thank you." Hakuba looked down at the shrunken teen as he said this. Conan nodded back and pulled out his phone, inputting a long-time memorized number and bringing the device up to his ear.

A good ten minutes had passed before the professor arrived at the mall in his yellow beetle. Earlier, after assuring that Kasuma would be taken care of properly, Ran had left with Aoko, leaving only the teenage detectives to wait for the professor. Conan begrudgingly squeezed next to Hattori in the passenger seat in order to let Kasuma lie flat in the back seat, her head resting in Hakuba's lap. "Um… well, I know this really isn't the right time to bring this up but…" Agasa began once he started driving. "But KID and Mage left a notice in my mailbox… about a heist."

"What?!"

"Take a look; it's in the glove compartment." Hattori opened the compartment and pulled out the single white slip of paper. It was Conan, however, who ended up reading it.

"'We've done so much rigorous planning so far, Mage and I feel we all should take a break. To do so, how about we engage in a chase tomorrow night at the Beika Art Museum? The target is a mystery but seeing as we have what we want, we're not actually going to steal it.' _Wow_… just _wow_," was Conan's only response to it.

"Well at least they're telling us outright they're not stealing anything," Hakuba murmured. "And them not even picking a target in advance simply exemplifies that."

"Tho' dey'll probably send Keibu-han a bett'r heist note jus' ta keep up da act," Hattori shrugged.

"Well that's good… I think we _all_ need a break." The males in the car, save Hakuba, jumped when they heard that response exiting Kasuma's mouth. Slowly, Kasuma opened her eyes and took in her situation. "It's a good thing they came up with this."

"Kasuma… malus nequamque," Hakuba began, glaring at Kasuma. He then launched into a rapid string of foreign phrases, all directed at the teen lying in his lap. Due to the sheer speed of his words, Conan and Hattori could only pick out words such as 'cucurbita,' 'stultissime,' 'matula,' 'fatue,' and 'stolide,' unable to figure out what any of them meant.

Once Hakuba had quieted down, Kasuma merely replied with, "Are you done insulting me in a dead language? …You know… I believe you just set a new record… I've never heard you use so many insults and profanities. I'm surprised you even _knew_ that many Latin insults."

Hakuba didn't acknowledge Kasuma question, instead saying, "I think I have the right to tell you to shut up. You just fainted… no doubt because of the lack of nutrients in your body, so you'd better shut up and _rest_."

"Fine," Kasuma said, turning to lie on her side. "But first, can I at least see if someone can bring my car back?" Kasuma dug through her pocket and pulled out her keychain. "Since it's still at the mall."

"I can take care of that, Kasuma-kun," Agasa offered. "I just need to know where it is."

Kasuma shut her eyes. "Pretty close to the mall entrance. I'm sure Conan-kun remembers my license plate, he could help you find it."

"Yeah, I remember it!" Conan exclaimed, accepting the keys Kasuma blindly held out. At that moment, Agasa arrived at the Kazuki residence and Conan jumped out of the car, running ahead and unlocking both the gate and door. Kasuma offered no resistance—if she was still awake, that is—to Hakuba pulling her out of the car and carrying her into the house. As Hakuba headed up the stairs towards Kasuma's room, Conan then ran outside and locked the door and gate before jumping back into the car.

"I knew you'd find me," Kasuma's voice said very quietly. Hakuba didn't respond, walking up the stairs as Kasuma continued, eyes still closed, "I was worried I wouldn't be able to suppress the urge to faint by the time you got there. Anyone else would have contacted the authorities."

Hakuba let out a deep sigh, nudging open the door to Kasuma's room with a foot. "Maybe they _should_ have been contacted. That might convince you to stop, you _**git**_." Despite the vehement tone of voice at the end of his sentence, Hakuba gently laid Kasuma on her bed and pulled the covers over her, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Kasuma pulled the hair band out of her hair and slipped it onto her wrist. "Now you're using British English to insult me?" Kasuma asked with a small grin.

"You really don't know when to shut up, do you?" Hakuba asked. He brushed away her dark bangs and rested his hand on her forehead. "Luckily, you don't have a fever but you _do_ look really pale." Hakuba stood and picked up a small trash can that was sitting on the other side of the room. "Get some rest. I'll look for something for you to eat. Hopefully you have something edible that won't upset your stomach. If you _do_ ever feel nauseous, use this dustbin."

Kasuma nodded subtly and turned onto her side. "But really…? What _is_ there for me to throw-up? Remember? I barely eat this week."

"Just shut up and get some rest," Hakuba retorted, walking out the room and turning off the lights.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Beika Art Museum  
December 15, 10:21 PM

Conan and Hattori fought themselves through the crowd that had gathered around the art museum. Hakuba was already through the crowd, talking with Nakamori near the museum entrance, when the two detectives approached them. "You're back again?" Nakamori asked with an eyebrow raised at the Osakan detective. "Did you just stay in Tokyo after the WLH?"

"Nah," Hattori shrugged. "I waz jus' visitin' dis kid 'ere when da note happen'd ta come in. 'N' I den decided ta join in on da heist tonigh'."

"Maa, ii wa," Nakamori mumbled, turning to several of the officers and giving them specific orders.

"Heiji-niichan, can we go inside? It's _coooold_ out here!" Conan whined like the child he appeared to be.

"Yea', it _is_ a bit chilly," Hattori agreed. "Le'z head inside den."

"Ah, I can show you two to the exhibition room," Hakuba offered, joining the detectives and entering the museum.

"So what jewel did they settle on, Hakuba-san?" Conan asked, looking up at the British detective and cursing his current height for the umpteenth time.

"An unnamed ruby that weighs around three kilograms or fifteen thousand carats… about 6 pounds, if we were to go by the standard system. It was found in Thailand several hundred years or so ago but not much else is known about it." Hakuba smirked. "Even when they're not _trying_ to steal something, they keep it up to the same criteria… that's KID and Mage for you."

"'N' since KID 'n' Mage won' actually be stealin' anyt'ing, dere's probably gonna be more focus on traps 'n' such, don' ya t'ink Kudo?" Hattori looked down at the shrunken teen.

"'Kudo?'" Hakuba quoted. "_That's_ your real identity?" Hakuba's voice dropped down to a whisper. "As in Kudo Shinichi?"

Conan gave Hattori a brief glare before nodding at Hakuba. "Yeah, that's my real name. I never gave it at that first meeting but I didn't think it was too important. Some of them, those who know of both my identities, might have already pieced everything together. Besides… it might have gotten too personal if I had delved deeper into Edogawa Conan's backstory…"

"You know, Kasuma's got some big nasty plan for you and Mouri-san from what I could gather," Hakuba remarked, warning the boy. "A while back, she had bought jewelry at the Mega Mall with Suzuki-san which had something to do with her plan."

"Great," Conan muttered as the detectives entered a large exhibition room. "Something to look forward to if I get my old body back."

"Ya sure don' soun' too confident 'bout gettin' your ol' self back," Hattori remarked, nonchalantly scanning the room.

"Well, it's not like I can predict the future," Conan mumbled. "I have no idea how this shit'll go down. We could utterly fail in this takedown and even if we _did_ succeed, there's still the chance that Haibara won't be able to create an antidote."

Hakuba sighed. "You know… if Kasuma were here, she'd probably tell you—"

"'Don't be so pessimistic. Get rid of those negative thoughts'… da ne?" Said teenager's voice floated towards the male detectives. All three of them jumped and whirled around, their eyes meeting a figure dressed in cargo pants, a baggy sweatshirt, and a black baseball cap. Peeking out from underneath the cap were two dark green eyes, light brown bangs falling across the person's forehead.

"You're not Kasuma," Hakuba stated, deadpan. "What the hell are you thinking? Sneaking up on three detectives? Mag—"

"_Shh!"_ Mage hushed the British detective. "Come now, it's hardly fair if you alert the police before the 'heist' even begins! I know I've haven't said anything to you about this but, it would be best if you called me Maeka in situations even remotely close to this."

"'Maeka?' You mean… that girl around my age with light blonde hair that always seemed to be around the heists was in fact _you!?_"

"Surprise!" Maeka replied with a grin. "It fooled you every time. Speaking of Kazuki-chan, where is she?"

"She's still recovering from her little fainting spell yesterday or… rather, I'm _forcing_ her to take more time in her recovery," Hakuba answered.

"W'at 'r' ya doin' ov'r 'ere anyway, M…Maeka?" Hattori asked, sending her a glare.

"I'm only passing through," Maeka said with a wave. "Need to meet up with… _you know who_ so we can finalize our game plan. And _no_… even though we've formed an alliance for the big 'Black takedown' deal, I'm not revealing anything," Maeka added as she noticed the looks in their faces. "After all, you detectives are merely 'critics' right?"

"KID, that blabbermouth!" Conan hissed, glaring at the floor.

"Well, I'd better go," Maeka waved, running out the room and around a corner.

"Hmm, it's useless to follow… Maeka," Hakuba began. "So I guess we should figure out what to do about the jewel they're 'after.'"

* * *

Maeka opened the door leading to the roof and quietly closed it behind her. A figure, an older man, was kneeling in front of a black duffle bag, rummaging through the contents. Next to him was a black climbing rope attached to the railing on the edge of the museum, the rope pulled taut. "Jii… where's Kaitou?"

Jii Konosuke looked up from his work briefly before nudging his head towards the location of the rope. Raising an eyebrow, Maeka jogged over to the edge of the building and looked over, spotting a figure in black down below, affixing something to the side of the museum. "Bocchama is working on the show… He's setting up the flares and other such tricks down there."

"_Jii-chan, where are the jets?"_ Kaitou's voice announced itself from a radio by Jii's knee.

"Coming, Bocchama." Jii pulled out two mini jets and sealed them in a plastic bag, attaching the bag to a separate rope and carefully reeling it down to the thief below. Maeka cautiously leaned over the railing, taking care not to be spotted by anyone outside the museum.

"_Is Maeka up there? I thought I heard her voice."_

"Yeah, I'm here," Maeka answered, projecting her voice towards the radio. "Is there anything you need help with? Should I join you down there?"

"_Well, I _will_ need some help on the other side of the building,"_ Kaitou mused, strapping a jet in place.

"Then, I'll do that," Maeka answered, digging through the bag and stashing several devices in hidden pockets on her person. "I'll grab as much as I can and set them up on the other side… Let's see, where's another radio set…?" Maeka searched the smaller pockets on the duffle bag, finally pulling out a black radio and headphones that were identical to the one broadcasting Kaitou's voice. Attaching the radio to a belt loop on her cargo pants and putting on the headphones, Maeka grabbed a long climbing rope, several strong carabiners, and a harness. Slipping into the harness, Maeka tied the rope around the railing and connected the harness to the rope with a carabiner. She climbed over the railing and dropped down the building until she was level with Kaitou. She immediately set off to installing the devices she brought down with her. "Jii, how long will it take to finish the timings for all this?"

"_I'm not sure,"_ Jii's voice responded. _"I've been slowly setting them up as Bocchama has been installing them so there's not _too_ much left to do. Maybe five to ten minutes depending on how fast you and Bocchama are with the installing."_

"_Well, it doesn't take long to deal with all this,"_ Kaitou murmured. _"In fact, I'm almost done on my side. Maeka… I can join you over there when I finish up this last one—shit!"_ Maeka looked over at Kaitou just as he used the card gun to shoot out a grappling hook, retracting it once it wrapped around the railing and pulling himself up towards the roof.

"What happened?" Maeka asked as Kaitou climbed over the railing and looked over it.

"_An officer was entering the room just as I finished the last one,"_ Kaitou explained. _"Had to get myself back up before he noticed me."_ Kaitou let out a sigh then headed over to the other side of the museum, tying his rope around the railing and sliding down the building to where Maeka was hanging. "Probably should make sure this gets done quickly in case an officer enters _this_ room," Kaitou grinned, tilting his head towards the window closest to them.

The two thieves couldn't help jumping slightly when they heard the soft chimes of a cell phone ringtone, looking all around them in case someone happened to hear it. Maeka pulled out her cell phone from one of her pant pockets. "Forgot to silence this thing," she murmured, bringing the phone to her ear.

"Who is—" Kaitou was cut off by Maeka who quickly pressed a finger against her mouth, her eyes wide in shock. She drew her thumb and pointer finger across her mouth in an act of zipping her mouth closed. Kaitou, getting the message, nodded and silently held out a hand for the devices she had brought with her, which she handed over. Maeka regarded the person on the other line, "You couldn't have picked a worse time to call."

* * *

"Konbanwa, Tantei-tachi!" a semi-familiar female voice called out. Conan, Hattori, and Hakuba turned around to face the speaker.

"Hey…" Conan began.

"Ar'n't ya…?"

"Julia?!" Hakuba confirmed Conan and Hattori's suspicions.** "What are you doing here?"**

Julia, aka Amunet, Taylor was standing at the entrance to the exhibition room, waving at the three male detectives. She walked up to them with a shrug. "Saguru… I think you can assume why I'm here."

"Your Japanese is pretty good, Amunet-neechan!" Conan exclaimed, bounding up to the teen.

"Kasuma's got _you_ calling me Amunet too?! Geez, that Egyptian freak… not that I should be talking," Amunet sighed. "As for my Japanese… aside from Kasuma always saying stuff in Japanese, I watch a lot of Japanese dramas and anime and I have a set of Japanese language disks that I frequently use. Compared to Crystal and Rianna, my Japanese is much better. I still screw the intonations and inflections sometimes but it's not too bad."

"That only really answers half of my question," Hakuba murmured. "What are you doing actually _inside_ this museum? It should have been closed off to the general public."

"Ah… that?" Amunet grinned. "I snuck in through a back door. The officer I was tailing never noticed me."

Hakuba sighed. "Kasuma was right… you _will_ end up in a jail cell someday."

Amunet grinned once again. "She tell you that often? Oh… speaking of… where _is_ Kasuma? Nothing happened to her, did it? No one answered when I stopped by her house."

"Nothing _today_ but she fainted yesterday," Hakuba explained. "From her usual routine… she should still be resting. If she was asleep, she might not have heard you at the door."

"Or she might have been in the lab!" Conan suggested. "Haibara told me it's soundproof."

"'Ow long 'ave ya been in Japan?" Hattori asked then, deciding to finally say something.

"Since yesterday," Amunet answered. "Christmas Break starts next week but my family wanted to leave a week early to give us more time at our destination. Technically, I'd be in Egypt right now but I decided—fairly last minute at that—that I'd go to Japan instead so while my parents continued on to Egypt, I grabbed a flight to Japan. I almost forgot about the significance of this week so I wasn't able to get here earlier. But, at least Saguru was here to help Kasuma out."

"I _still_ 'ave no idea w'at's goin' on wit' dat Neechan!" Hattori exclaimed.

Amunet was quiet as she glanced at Hattori. She then sighed and started off in a whisper, "A week ago… December seventh to be specific… was the sixth anniversary of the death of Kasuma's family. Every year, starting on the seventh, she falls into… not _quite _a state of depression but pretty close. She begins to eat less, finds ways to divert her attention, and a series of other things that gradually wears down her body until something like what happened yesterday occurs."

Hattori was silent for a while. When he finally thought to say something, he began with, "Wow… I 'new Neechan _did _all dose t'ings but I didn' kno' it was 'cause o' her family's _death_."

"Well it's not like I was very _clear_ when I explained what was going on yesterday," Hakuba muttered. Hattori sent him a glare but restrained against lashing out at the British detective. "I didn't want to worry Nakamori-san and Mouri-san any more than necessary."

"Before this year, we were the only ones who knew about it," Amunet mumbled. "Including Crystal and Rianna. Everyone else was in the dark and we made sure it _stayed_ that way."

Conan tugged Hakuba's blazer and the teen crouched down. "Does that mean that Kasuma-chan's other friends knew about her whole ordeal with the Organization?"

"I doubt that," Hakuba shook his head. "She didn't even tell _me_ about this group. Only that a woman murdered her family. That might be all Julia and the others know as well." At that moment, a cloud of smoke filled the entire exhibition room. As the smoke cleared, two new figures could be seen in the room.

"Ah~, it's been a while!" KID sighed, waving some lingering smoke away from his face.

"And it looks like we have a guest with us," Mage said then, her still green eyes resting on Amunet.

Amunet also cast her gaze towards Mage. **"Just think of me as Kasuma's replacement,"** she replied with a smirk.

"Well then," KID began. "Try to keep up!" With that, KID and Mage disappeared in a cloud of smoke and when it cleared, the targeted jewel had disappeared with them.

With a growl, Nakamori yelled, "Search the museum!" sending the officers out of the room and into the halls of the museum.

* * *

The door to the rooftop burst open and KID and Mage broke out onto the roof, shutting the door as quietly as possible behind them. "They shouldn't be up here for a while. Let's hope all our traps work," Mage sighed, carefully writing text onto a white piece of paper as KID placed the targeted ruby next to the rooftop door. Finished with the note, Mage placed it underneath the jewel then joined KID who was kneeling down next to the railing, playing around with a remote controller sitting on the ground. Mage ran past KID to an identical controller and pressed several buttons on it, the action cueing steam and fire jets, fireworks, sparklers and streamers of many colors as well as other little devices… all for the sake of entertaining the gathered audience.

"Don't move," a female voice demanded, the order accompanied by the cocking of a gun.

Carefully hiding her shock, Mage stood up slowly, hands at her side. "Vermouth, I'm surprised to see someone from Ubique on Waykamatayan's turf."

Vermouth gave a cold smirk, allowing Mage to rotate slightly which gave Mage a better view of the Organization operative. "Seems I'm the only one they'd let in. Who'd've thought." Vermouth shrugged, keeping the gun pressed against Mage's head. KID made to help his partner but was stopped when Vermouth shoved the gun closer to Mage. "Tsk, tsk, tsk… I wouldn't do that if I were you, Kaitou KID the Second. Take one step and I'll shoot." KID gritted his teeth and held his ground with clenched fists.

"Well Vermouth," Mage began calmly. "You must have _some_ reason for holding me at gun-point. Would you mind enlightening me? I'm afraid I don't understand your motives."

"As much as I'd like to be cryptic as I usually would, I'll cut to the chase," Vermouth stated. "I won't have much time anyway… those traps you set won't hold back the detectives for long." Vermouth dug through her black jacket and pulled out a long rolled up wad of paper, extending it towards Mage. "Here, take them."

Mage accepted them cautiously, examining the exterior. "What are they?" She finally said.

"Blueprints of our Headquarters," Vermouth answered. Both KID and Mage were unable to hide their shocked expressions behind their Poker Faces. Vermouth chuckled to herself. "You'll need them. Don't worry; I didn't do anything to them."

Mage chose that time to give a smirk. "Now I'm curious… How did you find out about our plans?"

It was Vermouth's turn to smirk. "I still have bugs placed in the Takashi—or, should I say Kazuki…?—residence. It wasn't the base of operations for you, I realize, but there was enough chatter in that house that I could pick up what was going on. You're lucky that I was the one listening in on your conversations. Anyone else would have sent members to kill you all."

"Oh…? Well then… I'm truly grateful, in that case. Though…"

KID finished what Mage was about to say. "We don't appreciate you bugging Tantei-chan's home. She has a private life like everyone else… and you've been _tracking_ that private life…?"

"I've got my reasons," Vermouth answered. "But we've gotten off topic, haven't we? I have one more thing to say." Vermouth lowered her gun and leaned in closer to Mage who only flinched in reaction. Poker Face once again failed to hide her widening eyes at the statement the actress whispered in her ear. Vermouth pulled back. "Well, this concludes my visit. We'll meet again soon, I'm sure…?" With that, Vermouth stepped back until her body was engulfed by shadows.

The firework show had long since ended. As soon as Vermouth was out of sight, KID came running up to Mage. "Hey… what did she say to you?!"

Mage stared down at the supposed blueprints she held in her hand. "Leave that be for now, Kaitou. First, we have to get away from the museum. The others are bound to be here soon." Nodding his agreement, KID jumped over the railing behind Mage and the two of them activated their gliders and flew away.

When Nakamori and the detectives (plus Amunet) arrived at the rooftop, all that was left was the night's heist target and a note saying 'This isn't what we're looking for so we'll return it to you. –KID and Mage.'

**Final Notes: Well, that ends their 'break' of sorts. My goodness, I almost forgot in include a chapter preview… Alright... I've decided to try and update monthly (granted, I remember to update) and BETA the chapters myself until either I find a new BETA or Cai-chan becomes more readily available to continue BETA-ing my story. Just know that there may still be some small flaws cause sometimes I overlook things because _I_ know what's suppose to be written and so my mind automatically reads it in the correct way, not the way it may actually be written.**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Don't listen to her! She can't be trusted!"**_


	33. Finalizing (27)

**A/N: Part four of the Men in Black Arc!  
****Warnings: Argument—or would it be better to say 'spat'?—(of sorts) and outbursts.  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): I really should try and add some fluff to this story… I guess the problem is that I don't know where to fit it in…  
Okay screw monthly, I'm gonna update whenever I remember... today being one of those days... So here's the next chapter~**

**Today's quote is: "You're verbally abusing me."—DCMonkey4EVR  
**"**It's called 'sisterly love,' get over it"—Azarath235**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Finalizing

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
December 16, 2:16 PM

"Skipping school still, I see," Amunet murmured as she caught Kasuma in the library with her head in her arms on the desk. Kasuma didn't respond. Sighing, Amunet walked up to her and sat on the desk, gently poking the teenager.

After about ten or so pokes, Kasuma swatted her hand away and sat up, "Oi! Stop that!"

Amunet grinned. "There's the Kasuma I know!"

Kasuma sighed and leaned back in her seat. "I didn't think you'd give up visiting Egypt in favor of checking up on me. You haven't been there in years."

"Well, _you_ took precedent over visiting my home country, dear, _which_, I might add, doesn't purposely weaken their being to the point of fainting. Darling, you can be _such_ an idiot sometimes."

Kasuma shot a grin towards the Egyptian teen. "Come now, you know me better than that. I'm almost _always_ an idiot… Just like I'm being an idiot at not tracking down the hidden cameras in my house."

"Ah… I saw that note in the kitchen," Amunet mumbled. "It was signed 'Kaitou KID' wasn't it?" Kasuma nodded, pulling herself out of her chair and joining Amunet on the desk instead. "Shouldn't you take those down?"

"I'm not worried. Sharon-san's doing this for a reason and obviously it's not a dangerous one… otherwise I'd be dead right now. Amunet, I only ask you to keep this from Ai-chan—you saw her briefly as she was heading downstairs—I don't want her to get paranoid about this. I think she's had those cameras around my house for a while… maybe even before I moved back in so if she hasn't acted yet, she never will."

Amunet nodded. "I understand but that still doesn't ease my worry… how can you trust her so easily? She practically backstabbed you when she killed your family—no, not practically… she _did_ backstab you when she did that—"

"_Shhh!"_ Kasuma hushed the teen, nudging her at the same time. "I think I hear someone coming." Kasuma's hunch proved correct as Haibara, Conan, and Hakuba entered the library. Amunet snuck a glance at Kasuma and nudged her back then jumped off the desk and walked towards the secluded corner of the library, walking into a blind spot to give them some privacy.

"We were _actually_ able to find you," Hakuba muttered.

"The week has long since ended, Hakuba," Kasuma deadpanned. "So…? Is there any _specific _reason you've stopped by?"

"KID and Mage have called an emergency meeting at Hakase's house," Conan explained briefly.

"They didn't give any details in the note they left but it sounded urgent," Hakuba continued.

"Hattori's already gone over to his place," Conan said. "Hakuba-san and I came over here to find you and Haibara."

"If I'd known about this earlier, I could have freed up my schedule," Kasuma said, looking at her watch. "But I have to help out at the mall in about ten minutes. You'll have to tell me about it later."

"I… see," Hakuba murmured.

"So we're just taking Haibara then," Conan mused.

"Guess so," Kasuma said with a shrug. "You know what… I _could_ send Amunet in my place… she could brief me about what happened."

"Don't you dare!" Amunet's voice yelled from the corner she had decided to vacate. "I just found a book I'd been looking for for _ages!_ Don't you dare pull me away from here; we can't find this book in America!"

"I'm kidding!" Kasuma yelled back. "If anything, I'll drag you to the mall to accompany me! And you can take the book with you," Kasuma added as an afterthought.

Hakuba checked the time on his pocket watch, then looked over at Kasuma. "We should probably head over now," he told her.

Kasuma gave him a smile. "Then tell me what happened over there when I'm done at the mall." Hakuba and the two not-children said their goodbyes and exited the library, heading for the Professor's home. Hands behind her head, Kasuma headed towards the blind spot Amunet had secluded herself in, joining the teen on the floor. "So…? Are you coming with me or not?"

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Agasa Residence  
December 16, 2:49 PM

Mage knocked on the window to Agasa's living room, perching herself on the window ledge. Conan jumped before realizing the situation, still not use to the method of entrance. Conan swiftly opened the window and Mage climbed in, wasting no time and extracting a long, thin white paper rolled into a cylinder. Mage looked around the room at the occupants, searching until she spotted KID lounging in a nearby chair, monocle still in place. She tilted her head away from herself, urging KID over to her and he rose, walking over to his partner. "What's going on? You called a very last-minute meeting." Conan looked back and forth between KID and Mage.

Mage grinned, "At the last heist, I received some useful information. I may be skeptical about _why_ I was given the information but I'll take what I can."

"What kind of information?" Jodie asked, eyes falling on the rolled up paper.

Mage unrolled the paper on the table in the room and all the occupants leaned in to get a closer look. Running her hand across the top, Mage locked gazes with Jodie and grinned again, "Blueprints." Mage chuckled, "I don't know what Vermouth's planning. I don't see why she would just hand these over…"

"Vermouth?!" Conan stared wide-eyed.

"Don't listen to her!" Haibara yelled suddenly. "She can't be trusted!"

"I agree," Jodie interjected. "Vermouth is devious. It's a trap, it's gotta be."

"I trust her."

Everyone in the room froze, the voice coming from an unknown location. Recovering from the shock, Mage pulled out a transmitter from one of her pockets and examined it. "Transmitter?" Conan asked, also examining the object.

Eyes wide, Hakuba stared at the small device, "…Kasuma."

"I trust her. I think you should too," Kasuma's voice fluttered in.

"How can you?! She killed your family!" Haibara exclaimed. There were several wide-eyes at Haibara's exclamation, the most notable being Hakuba.

"Ai-chan, ochitsukete. I trust her. She's not all that bad. Trust her and use the blueprints."

KID sighed, "I don't know what she's done to earn Tantei-chan's trust but I'll believe her… even if it may be a trap."

Kasuma laughed sardonically, "Well, looks like I have at least _one_ person behind me, even though said person is Kaitou KID."

"…I can't say I don't trust Vermouth," Conan began. "But I also can't say I _do_… Vermouth… she does strange things. On one hand, without hesitation, she will eliminate any target she is assigned but on the other, she will go out of her way to save me… and probably not just me." Conan sighed tiredly, all eyes turned to him. "She even said she'd stop tracking down Sherr—I mean Haibara and, so far, she hasn't gone back on her word."

"And she's done _both _to Kasuma! All in _one night_, for that matter!" Haibara shot back, resisting the urge to inquire about Conan's last point. "But that doesn't mean she's automatically trustworthy!"

"Well, the blueprints don't seem fake," KID spoke up then. "And along with the blueprints was a smaller map with a certain building marked." KID walked up to the laid out blueprints and pointed to a small colored map that was stapled to the bottom left-hand corner of the paper. "Earlier today, I located the building pointed out here and it matches the blueprint diagram… Of course, I couldn't check the inside but the exterior certainly matches… the right number of floors, rooms, windows, et cetera. It certainly doesn't seem like Vermouth lied to us from what I could see."

"Did you see anyone _entering_ when you were over there?" Eisuke asked the thief as KID sat back down in the chair he had pulled out earlier.

"No but I'm sure They'd've been _much_ more careful if it's the _Headquarters_," KID said with a shrug.

"I guess," Eisuke mumbled, looking over the papers on the table.

"At least we can make more concrete plans for when we actually enter," Mage murmured, cracking a smile.

"Yer not ev'n da one _enterin'_ da place," Hattori mumbled, looking over at the thief. Mage didn't regard the detective's comment, only glancing briefly in his direction.

"I still don't like it," Jodie said, shaking her head. "But as long as these plans can still be changed in case it _is_ a trick, then I won't complain."

"Don't worry about _that_," KID said. "Mage and I are _big_ fans of back-up plans."

"I wonder how soon we can act…" Sato murmured, her eyes still peeled on the blueprints in front of her.

"With the current pace we've been setting, we could probably make a move in…" KID paused as he formulated his answer. "Three days… tops."

"So… how is this plan going to work?" James asked the two thieves.

Mage rolled up all the papers together in one tube and wrapped a rubber band around them. "We can start that now if we want. KID and I _could_ work out a plan in our own free time but it would be best to consult with the others in on this plan so… Keibu-san…? And maybe you, James-san… or all three of you? And Hakase can stand in for the Tanteis? It would be too hectic if all of us were to crowd in one room in order to plan."

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Kazuki Residence  
December 17, 2:18 PM

Kasuma and Amunet lay on the floor of the Kazuki library, books scattered around their feet and papers in front of them, the two of them chatting quietly as they worked. So engrossed in their work, the two teenagers didn't notice—or they didn't _acknowledge_—Conan and Hakuba entering the library. Haibara was sitting in the couch in front of the teens, face hiding behind a thick, English book. "Kasuma-neechan…? Amunet-neechan? What are you doing?" Conan began to worry when he recognized familiar white lines drawn on blue, gridded paper.

"I was asked to translate these," Kasuma answered, pointing at the papers in front of her. "Sharon-san gave Mage blueprints in several languages, apparently. And Amunet's helping, especially since there's Arabic in here… and Arabic isn't one of my stronger languages so…" Kasuma trailed off, shrugging. Conan and Hakuba exchanged glances.

"Kasuma…" Hakuba began. "Can you come here for a moment?"

Sighing, Kasuma pulled herself off the ground and walked over to the two detectives. "Nani?"

"How much does Julia _know?!_" Hakuba gritted out. "She shouldn't be helping you with the blueprints, should she?"

"I know more than you think I do, Saguru," Amunet replied then, raising her voice so the detective could hear her. Haibara lowered her book slightly and glanced behind her at the Egyptian, a calm expression on her face. "We hit it off really well when Kasuma transferred into our class and during one of our school retreats, she leaked some information about her past. Not _everything_ by all means; I could tell_ that_ much…"

"She has an idea about what's going on," Kasuma continued. "She was bound to find out, in all honesty… with her staying at my place in the meantime."

"Oi, Kasuma," Amunet waved her hand in Kasuma's direction. "Get over here. I don't know Russian." Sighing, Kasuma jogged back over to Amunet and knelt down next to the teen, leaning over the blueprints and focusing on the section the Egyptian had pointed out.

In the meantime, Conan headed over to Haibara, pulling himself onto the couch next to the scientist. "Hey, how are you doing with the antidote?"

Haibara lowered the book and sent the shrunken detective a cold glare before bookmarking the page and setting the book in her lap. "If you must know, I'm not going to be working on it as much until we know the conclusion of the Organization invasion."

"What?! Why not? Even if it's just a prototype, I could be in my real body when we invade."

"Mage—or maybe it's easier to say Maeka…?—left a note in my lab saying that she'd be hacking into _Their_ database not only for helping those _entering_ the base but as well as searching for the hidden file where APTX-4869 is located. And even if I _were_ to create a prototype, you wouldn't be in the best condition due to the effects the prototype would _bound _to have on you… given previous incidents."

"Really?" Conan raised an eyebrow, giving a small sigh. "Is she a good hacker?"

"That's what it sounded like," Haibara said, shrugging.

"If Mage was able to sneak past all our securities in the past five years," Hakuba began, walking up to them. "Then there _must_ have been some hacking involved… _Especially_ since Mage has been solo up until reaching Japan."

"Either that or Mage has a partner you don't know about," Amunet said, scribbling in several translations onto one of the blueprints on the floor. "You never know… Mage has eluded the truth behind his or her gender for years… who's to say there aren't _more_ secrets?"

"Well with the alias 'Maeka,' one might assume that Mage is female… since it would be simpler to disguise as someone of the same gender as yourself," Haibara murmured, picking up her book again. "That, or Mage could be some perverted male… KID doesn't seem to mind disguising as females and it's already clear what _he_ does around the female population so it's not _too_ much of a stretch." Conan started, eyes wide in shock as Kasuma and Amunet burst out laughing, faces smothered by the blueprints they had spread out across the floor.

Smiling at Haibara, Kasuma got back on her feet and stretched. "Well, I'm hungry. Amunet, you want anything?"

"Of _course_ I do," Amunet answered hastily.

"Ai-chan, Conan-kun, Hakuba, you guys want anything?" Haibara shrugged in response and Conan nodded slowly. Kasuma looked back down at Amunet. "Will you be okay with the translating in the meantime?"

Amunet sent Kasuma a deadpan look. "You ask this while we're inside a full-scale _library_ with an entire eight-plus foot shelf _filled_ with world languages? I'll be fine, love."

"Alright, alright, I get it… stupid question." Kasuma turned towards the library doors leading to the kitchen. "I'll see what I have."

"Don't tell me you don't know what's in _your own_ kitchen?!" Amunet yelled across the room, grinning madly as she blindly felt around for one of the strewn out books. Kasuma didn't respond, shaking her head with a smile as she opened the door leading to the kitchen. Kasuma headed straight for one of the room's cabinets and rummaged through its contents, pulling out several bags in favor of searching further into the cabinet.

"Who is Vermouth?" Kasuma jumped and froze, nearly knocking over a container of Nesquik in her shock. She whirled around and faced Hakuba, who was studying her face for any giveaway signs. "Answer me…! Please." Hakuba stepped further into the kitchen until her was about a meter away from her.

"You already know, don't you?" Kasuma mumbled. "She was mentioned at that first gathering… Sharon Vineyard aka Chris Vineyard—"

"That's not what I meant," Hakuba uncharacteristically interrupted. "She was the one who murdered your family, right? The woman you saw in the forest that spared you."

"You know that as well," Kasuma continued in soft tones. "Ai-chan's exclamation made that perfectly clear."

"So why did you tell us to trust her?! Simply from what happened to you, I can _tell_ that she can't be trusted! There are too many sides to this… _Vermouth_."

Kasuma lowered her head, bangs shadowing her eyes. **"A secret makes a woman, woman,"** she whispered.

"…Pardon?"

"She's a family friend!" Kasuma finally raised her voice. "_That's_ why I trust her! _I_ trust her, my _parents_ trusted her, we _all _trusted her! You can't just _erase _twenty some years of friendship like that of my parents and Sharon-san's! She protected me from the Organization. My mother was pregnant with me when she was in _Their_ web. If Sharon-san hadn't done that, I'd've been in the Organization right now. We'd be enemies; you'd be trying to take down the group _I _belonged to!" Kasuma turned back around and opened a second cabinet, digging around. "…In all honesty, we'd probably have never _met_."

"But before that friendship…" Hakuba began in a quieter voice. "How many crimes as she committed? Two wrongs don't make a right…"

"You don't think I know that?" Kasuma murmured. "I _know_ what crimes Vermouth has committed but I also know what _good_ Sharon _and _Chris have done. Cold-hearted murderers don't go out of their way to protect others." Now silent, Kasuma grabbed a box of crackers and an unopened jar of Nutella and turned back into the library. "Hey Amunet, heads up!" Kasuma tossed the jar of chocolate spread to the unsuspecting teen on the floor who was barely able to turn around and catch the jar.

"Sweet! I didn't think Japan'd _have_ this stuff here," the teen grinned, examining the label.

Kasuma shrugged. "There's a supermarket on the opposite side of Beika Station that stocks imported goods. Ai-chan and I often stop by there to shop."

"Kasuma…" Hakuba had reentered the library, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his cell phone. "You've got a phone call." He extended his phone towards the teen and with a raised eyebrow, Kasuma accepted it, holding the device to her ear.

"_Tantei-chan…?"_ KID's voice fluttered through the phone. _"A moment of your time?"_

Kasuma nodded in silent reply, pressing a certain button on the phone. "I put you on speaker phone… is your side secure?"

"_Of course,"_ KID replied, his voice attracting the attention of the two shrunken teens and Amunet. _"I should be asking you that as well."_

"Safe here too," Kasuma answered, ignoring the pointed stare she was receiving from Amunet. "What was it you needed, Kaitou?"

"_I wanted to know how the translations are going,"_ KID said. _"We're hoping to make a move _very _soon and in order to do that, we need the blueprints translated."_

"It shouldn't be much longer," Kasuma replied. "It's not like we're translating a _book_. The blueprints should be done by tonight at the latest."

"Speaking of…" Amunet began. "How is the plan Kasuma mentioned holding up?"

"_Seeing as I only vaguely recognize that voice, I'm going to assume you were Tantei-chan's replacement at the last 'heist', correct?"_ KID asked, the grin evident in his tone. _"As for the plan, everything so far is going as planned… all the equipment is ready, all the gadgets made and functional, et cetera."_

"That's good to know," Hakuba murmured.

"_All we need now are the blueprints so we can check over our plan incase Maeka and I misinterpreted any part of the blueprints,"_ KID continued.

"Well, they'll be done soon," Kasuma repeated. "If you stop by sometime tonight, they should be ready." Without any other reply, the line on KID's end died. Kasuma closed the phone and tossed it back to Hakuba.

"Kasuma-oneesaaaan!" a young voice yelled from the foyer.

"You left the door open _again?!"_ Hakuba exclaimed. "You're security tendencies aren't very good."

"I saw them through the kitchen window. Didn't bother in rectifying that factor," Kasuma murmured as she and Amunet scrambled to roll up the blueprints and stash them behind the row of world language dictionaries they were closest to. Haibara set her book down and jumped off the couch in order to pick up the remaining dictionaries and head over to the two teenagers. They managed to successfully hide the blueprints just as Ayumi, Mitsuhiko, and Genta walked into the library.

"Conan!" Genta exclaimed. "We knew you'd be here!"

"Why have you not been in school?" Ayumi asked.

"Haibara-san as well," Mitsuhiko added.

"Uh… How'd you know I'd be here?" Conan asked with a nervous laugh.

"Ran-oneesan said you've been at Hakase's place lately but you weren't there when we went over," Ayumi explained.

"If you weren't at the detective agency or at Hakase's, the next best place would have been Kasuma-san's house," Mitsuhiko picked up from there.

Kasuma glanced over at Conan and sent him a grin. 'Quite the detectives aren't they… Shinichi-kun?'

"So why haven't you been coming to school?" Genta asked, bringing the original topic back around. Conan nervously glanced between Hakuba and Kasuma, clearly having no idea on what to say.

Kasuma cleared her throat, drawing the attention of the Shonen Tantei, and pushed Amunet closer towards the group of kids. "Conan-kun was excited when he heard Amunet was visiting so he and I have been showing her around the city. Ai-chan's been gone because a week ago, she sprained her ankle and I've been making her stay at home so she doesn't worsen it… but you're all healed up, ne?"

"Eh…? Oh, uh, yeah," Haibara gave a brief nod. "Much better now."

"Nani?! What happened?" Mitsuhiko asked anxiously.

"…Uh… I… fell off a ladder in here and landed on my foot wrong," Haibara managed to fib after a few seconds of thought.

As Mitsuhiko worriedly—and repeatedly—asked if Haibara was _really_ alright, Genta took in the unfamiliar, tan teenager in the room. "Oh yeah, who are you?"

"She's one of my friends from the States," Kasuma explained. "Julia—or Amunet—Taylor. She let us crash at her father's condo in Seattle a few weeks ago during KID and Mage's WLH." Amunet sent her a grin before giving the kids a quick wave.

"Ooooh…" Genta murmured. He looked back at where Hakuba was standing. "…And who are you?"

"Mou Genta-kun~! Have you forgotten already?!" Ayumi exclaimed. "That's the high school detective Hakuba-oniisan!" Genta chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head with a hand.

"Anyway… do you guys want to play with Conan-kun and Ai-chan? Or are you gonna head home?" Kasuma asked the Shonen Tantei.

"Actually…" Genta began. "Could we play some more of your video games?"

"Sure, go ahead," Kasuma said with a shrug.

"Ai-chan, Conan-kun, are you coming with us?" Ayumi asked the two faux children.

"Uh… not yet," Conan shook his head. "I'll be up there soon though."

Ayumi looked to Haibara for her answer. Haibara looked up from her book. "I guess I'll join you when I finish this chapter."

With a cheer, the three kids ran up towards the stairs and disappeared behind the door of Takeo's room. Kasuma looked at Amunet. "Do you mind…?" she asked the Egyptian. "Keeping an eye on the kids, I mean."

"Sure!" Amunet exclaimed. "You don't have to ask twice. If it involves video games, I'm definitely there." Amunet followed the path the kids took and disappeared behind the now ajar bedroom door.

Sighing, Kasuma walked back over to where she and Amunet hid the blueprints and extracted them. "Guess I should finish these translations before the kids come back down."

"And KID and Mage will probably call another meeting once you have those done," Hakuba murmured.

"All the more reason to finish these up," Kasuma said. "The sooner the better."

**Conan: Azarath will try her best to turn this story into a ShinRan, a KaiAo, and a HeiKa… Wait what?!  
****Azarath: *smiles sheepishly*  
****Kasuma: Finally! Will I get to play matchmaker?  
****Azarath: *nods*  
****Ran: NO! Don't let her! She'll torture us!  
****Kaito: I second that!  
****Kazuha: I third that!  
****Azarath: *clears throat* **_**Ahem!**_** Onto the final notes…!**

**Final Notes: And the time draws near until the inevitable invasion!**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: **__**"Was that our first lesson on phantom thieving?"**_


	34. Into The Lair (28)

**A/N: Part five of the Men in Black Arc!  
****Warnings: Gunshot, foul language… (and I can't think of anything else)  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Almost done! :D**

**Today's quote is: "Hey, while you're down there, can you tie my shoe? Since your [backpack]'s too heavy that you can't get up… and if **_**I**_** bend down to tie it, [mine'll] tip me over…"—Mari-chan (As a little background, I was being 'attacked' (aka tickled) after school and ending up falling backwards. Since I had my backpack on, I couldn't get up which led to Mari-chan's question.)**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Into the Lair

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Mouri Detective Agency  
December 18, 10:29 AM

"What do you _mean_ you're not coming to the meeting?" Conan hissed. Kasuma temporarily set her purse against the cabinet by the door of the detective agency.

"I gave them information, translated the blueprints; my job is done," Kasuma shrugged. "This last meeting should be about the invasion itself and I'm not participating in that part of the plan so I'm not going."

Conan started and quirked an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"If this fails, _They_ will have our faces… _They_ will know who tried to take _Them_ down." Kasuma leaned against the couch in the room. "_They'll_ know my face for sure… I've managed to stay hidden from the Organization for six years; I want to _keep_ hidden… Now more than ever since I'm taking care of Ai-chan."

"Well when you put it _that_ way… makes sense," Conan murmured.

"Besides, KI—Kaitou and Maeka managed to gather quite a bit of help; nothing will be hindered if I don't attend." Kasuma looked around the agency. "If I _do_ do something, I could stray Ran-san and others not in the know away from the Operations base… it's probably going to be around Hakase's place."

"Hmmm." Conan walked into his shared room with Mouri and grabbed several of his gadgets, walking out soon after and heading for the door. "Guess I should head over then."

"I'll join you," Kasuma said, picking her purse up again. "At least until you reach Hakase's, then I'll head over to my place. I should probably see if Amunet found her way back there."

"Why aren't you with her?" Conan asked, jumping down the stairs two at a time.

Kasuma shrugged. "She wanted to feel her way around Beika so unless she's lost, she should be near my place. Given Amunet's character, I would not be surprised if she got lost."

The teens—disregarding Conan's current stature—chatted about anything _except_ the reason for their walk towards Agasa's home, new topics popping up when they passed something of interest. When they were about a block away from the inventor's house, they recognized a familiar face. "Hakuba?" Kasuma asked, walking up to the blonde teen. Said teen was bent over, extending a hand to another fallen figure in front of him, when he heard Kasuma.

"Eisuke-nii—I mean Eisuke-san? What happened?" Conan asked, joining the gathered teenagers.

"I tripped is all," Eisuke muttered, accepting Hakuba's outstretched hand and standing up properly.

"Over seemingly nothing," Hakuba added with a glance at the newcomers. He held his gaze with Kasuma for a longer period of time. "…Kasuma… where's Julia?"

"Around here somewhere," Kasuma said with a small flick of her right hand. "After I escorted Conan-kun to Hakase's, I was gonna look around for her."

"You make it sound like I really _am_ a kid," Conan muttered with a scowl.

Kasuma grinned. "In _that_ form, you are."

"Wait… Hakuba-san… did you just call her 'Kasuma'? As in _Kazuki_ Kasuma?" Eisuke asked the British detective just then.

Hakuba looked taken aback. "Yes… I did…" he said after recovering. "Have you two met before?"

Kasuma shook her head. "I've _heard_ of you from Conan-kun but that's it. Hondou Eisuke, right?" Eisuke nodded.

"So _you're_ the ally Maeka-san was talking about? The one who underwent a tragedy?"

"_That's_ how she described it?!" Kasuma asked, incredulous. "Geez… that makes it sound like my life's a Greek play or something…" Kasuma suddenly pulled out her phone. "That'll be Amunet," she murmured as the phone vibrated in her hand. She accepted the call and moved the device to her ear. "I gotta go guys," she told the teenagers. "I just _knew_ you'd get lost, Amunet!" she said through the phone as she walked away. The three remaining teens continued on to Agasa's house.

Entering Agasa's home, it was evident that they were one of the last to arrive. KID was leaning nonchalantly against the wall, the FBI agents and police officers were sitting around the couch, examining one of the blueprints. Haibara, Agasa, and Hattori were standing near KID chatting—rather Agasa and Hattori were chatting, Haibara settled for glaring at the thief, said thief feeling _very_ uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze—not that he'd announce that fact. "Ne…" Conan spoke up, drawing everyone's attention. "Where's Maeka?"

"Over here," came the other thief's voice. Maeka revealed herself walking out of the path that led to the old location of Haibara's lab. She was carrying a large duffle bag with rolled-up papers sticking out one side. "Just transporting the gadgets Kaitou and Agasa-hakase made."

"Is _this_ the day we finally find out what the plan is?" Sato asked the thief—either of them.

"Yes," KID said, pushing off the wall and relieving Maeka of the bag after she pulled out the papers. "If all goes well and the plan is agreed upon, we strike tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!" was the received exclamation from most of the room occupants.

"Didn't expect you to set up the invasion so soon," Conan added. "Can I at least ask how we're going to get _inside_ safely?"

"That's my job," Maeka said, rolling out the papers, which turned out to be the remaining blueprints.

KID jabbed a finger towards his partner. "She's an amazing hacker. Nothing stops her. She can get you safely into _Their_ lair. You just have to trust her."

"We do," Conan stated tersely.

"It's not like we got uh choice, righ'?" Hattori added, grinning despite himself. "If yer getting' us in dere saf'ly, ya _gotta_ 'ave some skills."

Maeka grinned at the Osakan. She then addressed the group, "There's another thing we need to ascertain… besides the police and FBI, who can shoot a gun? I hate to pessimistic but there probably _will_ be gunfire."

"You mean besides you two?" Hakuba asked, looking at the two thieves in the room.

"Exactly," Maeka nodded. "We won't be going in with you. I will be leading you in via Operations base and Kaitou will be his own distracting self."

"…What?"

"I think _now's_ a good time to explain your plan," Conan prompted.

* * *

Beika, Japan  
Outside the Mouri Detective Agency  
December 19, 7:41 PM

"Where's the rest of the Mouri family?" Maeka asked Conan as the shrunken teen appeared from around the large black truck sitting across the street from the agency.

"Occhan's playing mahjong with a bunch of his friends and Ran's with Sonoko… there shouldn't be anyone in the agency."

"Good, then there shouldn't be a problem if we hang around here for most of the night." Maeka walked towards the back of the truck and opened the two doors, ducking inside with Conan close behind. The inside of the truck was spacious… and filled with equipment. James Black, Megure, and Agasa were already inside the truck, fiddling around with various pieces of equipment. Maeka headed towards a box near the doors of the truck, digging around. She pulled out several items. "Here," the thief handed the detective a black vest. "This is for you; make sure not to misplace this… it would be very awkward if one of the others got this."

"What _is_ it?" Conan asked.

"Kevlar… child size," Maeka explained. "And _believe_ me, that was a pain in the _ass_ to find. Any of the other Tanteis—or Hondou-san—would be _very_ uncomfortable in that."

"Speaking of… where _is_ everyone else?"

"I believe the remaining FBI and officers are already in the vicinity of the headquarters. Everyone else is at Agasa-hakase's house… including Kaitou."

"Actually…" James' voice alerted them. "They're just up ahead, aren't they?" Maeka glanced at the computer in front of James then hopped out of the truck, walking towards the front of the truck. True to his word, the remaining members of their group were approaching the truck. KID was the first to arrive, followed shortly by the rest of the detectives, Haibara, and Eisuke. KID flashed a grin before following Maeka quietly into the back of the truck. Maeka went immediately to the same box she was looking in earlier, pulling out a few more items. Sitting on the edge of the truck, Maeka handed each of the newcomers—save KID and Haibara—a Kevlar and folded up headset.

"Wear these when you enter the building… preferably under your clothes. And here's a headset for each of you; we'll be able to communicate back and forth and if need be, there's a collapsible gas mask in all of them," she explained. From a hidden pocket, she pulled out a black baseball cap and slipped it on her head, concealing most of the blonde wig that she frequently wore with the 'Maeka' alias. "I'm also gonna have to bug you all… granted it's merely a tracker so I can at _least_ keep an eye on you inside the building. And since we've already synchronized the frequencies from Tantei-kun's gadgets and our own radios and such, I'll be able to use the equipment in here to stay in touch."

"Unless the Organization has a frequency jammer in the building," Eisuke muttered.

"No," Maeka denied. "You see, that's another area where my hacking comes into play. If I come across any such jamming systems, I'll break into them and disable them. No worries there."

"What if the program is too complicated to disable?" Eisuke asked as he examined the headset.

"You forget Hondou-san… Tensai-chan and Tantei-chan know about the inner workings of the Organization. I didn't ask much of Tensai-chan," Maeka looked down at the scientist, "But I gained enough information from Tantei-chan to formulate a strategy about breaking into _Their_ database in order to shut down such troublesome problems." Maeka dug around the box again and pulled out four items. "Hondou-san… you're gun."

"You _kept_ it all this time?!" Eisuke exclaimed. "I thought you left it in my apartment!"

Maeka shook her head. "You'll probably need it anyway." Maeka then showcased a Walther PPK and Colt M1911A1. She tossed one to Hakuba and the other to Conan. "Take care of those; Tantei-chan expects them back." She picked up the last item and handed it to Hattori.

"Is dat my…?"

"Shinai? Yes, it is," Maeka answered. "I figured you'd prefer this over a gun… though if you want one on you for extra measure, I can give you one."

"Ah! That reminds me," Conan dug around his pockets then pulled out a pair of glasses identical to the pair he was currently wearing. "Hakase mentioned that you wanted some of the tracker-stickers; you can use these to trace the signals from them if you end up using them." Conan dug around another of his pockets, pulling out a watch like the one he was wearing. "I also asked Hakase to make a spare Stun-Gun Wristwatch. It has all the features of my current one so it might come in handy."

"It's time," Megure said then, drawing the attention of all the people gathered around the back of the truck.

"Jaa," Agasa began, exiting the truck. "I'll take everyone over." Agasa led Hakuba, Hattori, Eisuke, and Conan in the direction of his house, heading to where his beetle was hidden. In the meantime, KID jumped into the truck, closing the two doors behind him.

"When this is over," Maeka began quietly. "Kaitou KID and Masked Magician will retire… for good." KID nodded in silence. He pulled out his card gun and slipped in several various projectiles.

"Bring it!"

Maeka slipped on a small headset with a microphone attached, adjusting said microphone. She tossed KID a similar item, this one without an obvious microphone. Maeka slipped the spare tracking-glasses into a hidden pocket and moved to the front of the truck, sitting down in one of the chairs.

"_Take out their main power source first. The back-up generator will kick in immediately but there's only one or two walls that you'd need to break down."_

Maeka smirked. 'Well, _you're_ certainly being helpful… Vermouth.' Maeka spoke into one of Conan's transmitters, "Do you guys have the headsets on?"

Conan's voice came faintly through the transmitter. _"Yeah, we have them on."_

"Good, I'm hooking them all up." Maeka flipped several switches in front of her.

"_Man!"_ Hattori huffed. _"Dese thin's 'r' so _heavy!"

"Well, since those things have to accommodate gas masks," Maeka said, shrugging. "And there wasn't enough time to tinker with them to make them lighter… It took a while just to mass _produce_ them."

"_When are we starting the plan?"_ Jodie's voice filtered through the headset.

"When Agasa-hakase gets here," Maeka replied, typing away frantically on the keyboard in front of her. Maeka rotated in her seat. "Are reinforcements in place?" she asked James and Megure. The two older men nodded.

"Chiba-kun is waiting minutes away from the building… concealed of course," Megure answered.

"And many of my fellow FBI agents are in the vicinity as well," James informed the thief. There was a knock on the back of the truck and KID gingerly opened it. He opened it fully when he recognized Agasa and the professor walked into the truck. KID closed the doors again and began digging through a few of the boxes in the truck.

"Looks like we can start," Maeka murmured. In a louder voice, Maeka said through the microphone, "We're starting." Maeka looked back at KID. "Ready, Kaitou?"

"Ready… Aibou."

_-First, I will glide over to the location and draw the attention of the members inside to the roof.-_

KID released his glider and landed on the roof of an adjourning building to the targeted building. Discretely, like the thief he was, KID shot a grappling hook to the Organization headquarters and, using the Turbo Engine Skates he had only used once prior to tonight, sped his way to the other building. Retracting the hook and removing the skates, KID rounded the edge of the building, attaching strings of sparklers to the edge and letting them drop down the length of the building. He also affixed speakers along points of the building then stood in the middle of the roof with a remote control in his hand. Showcasing his trademark grin—not that anyone'd be able to see it—KID pressed the switch, activating all the sparklers. Smirking, KID stowed away the control, turned on a microphone, and began laughing manically. He could distantly hear windows being thrown open and minutes later, the door to the roof burst open, revealing Snake and three other Organization members._ "YOU!"_

_-KID will notify me when his preparations are completed. Then you guys, who will be concealed in various places, will walk inside the building. I will hack into the security cameras and shut them down so you can enter freely.-_

KID switched off the microphone connected to the speakers around the building. _"I'm done here,"_ KID murmured, utilizing ventriloquism so as not to alert the Organization members on the roof with him.

"Ryokai," Maeka replied, sneaking into the Organization's network and shutting down the security cameras. "Minna," she said, addressing the rest of the invading team. "The cameras are down and KID has the members distracted so it's safe to enter."

"Got it," a range of various voices chimed in.

"Remember… always stick to the shadows. Use anything and _everything_ to your advantage," Maeka told them.

Conan dead-panned. "Was that our first lesson on phantom thieving?"

"You betcha!" Maeka exclaimed with a grin.

"Great," Hakuba muttered. "_Now_ what's next? Disguise?"

Grin still in place, Maeka said, "No, that's too advanced… Holmes."

Inside the FBI truck, all the occupants' attention was directed towards the sound of a police siren. "Nakamori-kun…? Isn't that Nakamori-kun driving?" Megure asked aloud as he stared at a zoomed in photo of the approaching police car.

"Masaka…!" Maeka bolted out of her seat. "He saw KID flying away?!" Maeka threw open the back doors. "How far away?"

"Judging from the sound… I'd say about 800 meters away…?" Haibara said. "And the Doppler Effect certainly hasn't happened so he hasn't passed us…" Cursing, Maeka flung herself onto the top of the truck, slipping into a crouch as she caught sight of the car. Calculating the time it would take to jump onto the car at its current speed, Maeka waited a few more seconds then launched herself off the truck, landing on the hood of the police car. Shocked, Nakamori immediately hit the brakes.

"What the hell?!" Nakamori exclaimed, getting out of the car. "Are you _crazy?!_"

Maeka smirked, holding a finger up to her lips. "Come now Keibu… you already know how crazy I am," she said in the familiar tones of Masked Magician.

"M-m-mag—"

"_Shhhhh!"_ Maeka hissed. "Don't use that name out here. Get into the truck." Her voice held no room for argument so Nakamori complied.

"Megure!?"

* * *

"Where is it?!" Snake demanded, raising his gun at KID's chest.

Smirking, KID shielded his visible eye with his hat. "Where is what?" he asked nonchalantly.

"You know what I'm talking about!" Snake spat out.

"_Aibou, I just turned on the camera in my tie. Do you recognize the other three members?"_ KID spoke through the hidden microphone, utilizing ventriloquism. Keeping his gaze on Snake, KID said, "With pointed fangs it sits in wait… With piercing force it doles out fate…"

"What the hell?!" Snake hissed.

Maeka opened several different programs, one displaying the rooftop encounter. "Kaitou… those three are from Waykamatayan…"

"Over bloodless victims proclaiming its might…" KID continued, ignoring Snake's outburst.

"Their codenames… Widow, Shark, and Tiger," Maeka finished.

"_Thanks,"_ KID quickly said quietly. He kept his composure as he said, "Eternally joining in a single bite. What am I?"

"An annoyance," Snake muttered.

"Tsk, tsk, wrong answer," KID said, shaking his head slowly. "Try your best… I know the brains of snakes are generally the size of a grape… I completely understand if your small brain can't compute the answer~!" KID crooned, a huge grin on his face.

"KISAMA!" Snake growled.

"The answer is stapler!" KID answered his own riddle. He threw down several smoke bombs and disappeared. His voice, however, remained and he said, "What gets whiter the dirtier that it gets?"

"Shut up!" Snake exclaimed, taking a blind shot in the smoke.

"You missed~!" KID crooned. "The answer is 'a chalkboard'!"

"Maeka, we're in," Conan said, pulling out his gun from underneath his shirt, the others following suit.

_-However, don't move much farther until someone has tampered with the object that resembles a breaker in the front hall.-_

Conan bent down next to the large, bulky box attached to the wall, pulling out a pocketknife and flicking the blade out. Eisuke opened the door to the box, revealing several wires in an assortment of colors. "Maeka, what do I cut?"

Back in the FBI truck, Maeka rotated in her seat and looked over at James, "What do the blueprints say?"

"Let's see…" James examined the blueprints in front of him. "Cut all the visible wires except the red one… that will trigger the alarm."

"Did you catch that Tantei-kun?" Maeka asked through the mic. "Cut all visible wires except the red, that will trigger an alarm. When you're done with that, I'll bring down the alarm system myself."

"All except the red huh?" Conan set out on his task.

"How you doin' Kaitou?" Maeka asked via their private connection.

"_Havin' fun… Snake is _very_ irritable right now,"_ KID answered, disappearing in another cloud of smoke as he gave yet another riddle, "A black dog is sleeping in the middle of a black road that has no streetlights and there is no moon… A car coming down the road with its lights off steers around the dog… How did the driver know the dog was there?"

"Enough of your riddles!" Snake exclaimed, taking yet another blind shot.

"Missed me~!" KID said in a sing-song tone. "You know… If you just _answered_ some of my riddles, you might get me to stop. The answer was 'It was daytime.'" Another bullet flew through the air, narrowly missing the mischievous thief. 'Shit… who just got here…?' he asked himself, looking around the area. He spotted his target—rather, _targets_—in neighboring buildings on either side of the headquarters. Due to the proximity of the female sniper, KID figured she must have been the one to take the shot. _"Aibou,"_ KID whispered, once again relying on his useful skill of ventriloquism. _"Newcomers… can you identify them?"_

Maeka spanned around the range of the camera in KID's tie, spotting the two snipers in their respective buildings. "Ne…" Haibara spoke up. "Wouldn't they be Chianti and Korn? Kudo-kun had had several run-ins with them and I know those two are some of _Their_ best snipers."

"Kudo-kun?" Megure asked, eyebrow raising. Haibara gave the inspector a short nod.

"And I doubt _They_ would send out amateur snipers to assist Snake and the other members… especially since _They're_ dealing with Kaitou KID," Maeka added.

"Maeka, I'm done," Conan said just then.

"What the hell is going _on_ here?!" Nakamori exclaimed.

Maeka glanced over at Megure. "Can you explain please?" Megure nodded. She spoke through the mic next, "I'll deal with the alarm system… Since you cut the main power source, _Their_ defenses won't be as strong. Hang tight for a bit." Maeka's fingers were sent flying across the keyboard. Haibara climbed into the seat in between Maeka and Agasa.

"Are you _really_ going to search for Apoptoxin's location?" Haibara asked the thief.

"Of course," Maeka said with a grin. "I don't go back on my word."

"If your attempt fails and the Organization _finds _me because of you," Haibara began with an icy glare. "I swear, you _will_ regret it!"

Maeka let out a small laugh. "You're so cute when you threaten people… Shiho-chan."

Haibara's eyes shot wide open in shock, Agasa freezing next to her, having overheard the thief's comment. "Y-you… h-how…?" Maeka urged her closer with a finger and whispered in her ear, whatever the thief was saying to her causing the scientist's eyes to grow wider.

"Alright," Maeka said to herself, pulling away from the shrunken scientist. "Back to work." A few short minutes passed before Maeka ceased in her frantic typing. She pulled the microphone closer to her mouth. "It's safe to proceed." Maeka looked down at Haibara. "Ojou-chan. I'm in. Where exactly would I find the poison's information?"

As Haibara directed Maeka to the most probable location of Apoptoxin, those inside the building moved further in. They stopped, however, when they reached an intersection. "Maeka," Hakuba said through his headset. "We're at an intersection… where do we turn… or should we split up?"

"Ehh, M-maeka is preoccupied," Agasa's voice answered. "Ai-kun's helping her with finding Apoptoxin. I'm taking over in the meantime."

"Which way, Hakase?" Conan asked then.

Agasa read over the blueprints. "Well, there are doors along every hallway. KID said he was going to try and set up infra-red sensors along the roof but we haven't got that ready yet. I think it would be best to split up and search each hall. At least that way, more ground can be covered."

"W-wakatta," Conan murmured. "Like he said, let's split up." The group of nine split up into groups of three, each taking a different hallway and cautiously opening each door as they passed it.

"If you're splitting up, you should at least receive more backup… in case a room has enough members to overpower you," Maeka cut in then, pausing in her search to turn to James. "Could you send in some FBI agents?" James nodded, sending an order through a radio in front of him. "If we send in the police, we could heavily tip _Them_ off and _They _would be out of there in seconds… at least _They_ _know _of the FBI's investigation into them."

-_After you enter the heart of the building, I will glide over to the Headquarters. I'll take with me equipment so I can continue to stay in touch with you all. The FBI truck will follow me using the glasses Tantei-kun gave me to track my signal after ten or so minutes have passed._-

"_Maeka, I could use some help here,"_ KID's voice said just then. _"Snake's gettin' wild over here."_

"Sorry Kaitou, but you'll have to hang in there… I still haven't found Apoptoxin," Maeka apologized. "Although, I think I have an idea on where it is." Maeka looked down at Haibara, "Once I find it, I'm leaving to help KID so can you take these glasses in order to execute the next part of the plan?" Maeka extended Conan's spare tracking glasses to the scientist. "I have some of those tracker-stickers on my person so I shouldn't be too hard to track down." Haibara nodded, opening the small door connected the back of the truck to the front and slipping through, closing the door behind her.

Nakamori stood, having heard the current situation from Megure, "Well… if Division One is in on this… I guess I shouldn't intervene…"

"Actually, maybe you _could_ help," Maeka added. "If this all goes down well, we'll need police and FBI agents to swarm the building. You could call some of your men to help… your most trusted, that is." Nakamori nodded, agreeing. He then opened the doors and jumped out.

"Nakamori-keibu?!"

"Bilat inana!" Maeka hissed, scrambling over to the doors. Ran was standing outside, her gaze switching from Nakamori to Maeka when she noticed her at the doors. "Mouri-san…" Maeka slipped once again into the tones of Masked Magician so Ran could recognize her. "I was told that you'd be at Suzuki-san's house… What are you doing here?"

"M-mage-san…?" Ran stuttered, shocked. Ran finally took in the scene in front of her: expensive equipment, computer screens depicting several small, moving dots, Agasa, Megure, and James—whom she recognized from her hospital visit with Jodie—inside, staring at her. "What's going on?"

Suddenly, Maeka's hand flew up to her headset. "Tantei?" She asked, dropping the honorific so Ran couldn't distinguish a face. "I just heard a gunshot, what happened?" Maeka gritted her teeth and flew back inside the truck, sitting back down in her seat and setting off to work.

"Is that Shinichi? Shinichi's there isn't he?!" Ran asked, her tone closer to that of a demanding one than an inquisitive one.

Cursing in another language, Maeka then gritted out, "Get her in here! She's not safe out there now." Keeping half of her attention on her search for Apoptoxin and the other half on Ran, Maeka flipped a few switches on the panel in front of her then spoke through the mic, "Tantei… Someone wants to talk to you. I think you should answer."

"Who is it?" Conan took note of the missing honorific, sticking close to Hattori and Agent Camel.

"An angel," was Maeka's vague reply before the shrunken teen could hear some static on the other line. The voice that came next froze him, feeling as if his heart had stopped.

"Shinichi…?"

**Final Notes: …Aaaand I'm gonna leave you at that (dontcha **_**hate**_** cliffhangers?)  
****In case no one recalls it, the episode I was referring to with the whole Ran-recognizing-James-from-hospital-visit is Episode 346: Find the Buttock's Mark (Part One)  
By the way, just to make this clear, the italicized text that had the hyphens before and after it was the explanation of their plan which was mentioned at the beginning of this chapter.  
And looking back over this chapter and recalling what happens in following chapters, I really could've written this whole thing better... However, I don't want to rewrite this and the following chapters so I'm going to leave them as is and hope you all are okay with that.**

**R&R please~**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: **__**"No! I'm **_**not **_**gonna let that happen again!"**_


	35. Destroy the Black (29)

**A/N: Part six of the Men in Black Arc!  
Warnings: More gunshots  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Why am I not good at action scenes? :P I want to hurt the characters but at the same time I don't want to hurt the characters… *dilemma*  
I really could've re-written these recent chapters since it's been about a year since I wrote these... But I might just do that for chapter 33 (39 by FF's count)**

**Today's quote is: "Look! It flails when you poke it!"—Neko-chan/Amunet's creator**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Destroy the Black

* * *

Beika, Japan  
FBI Truck  
December 19, Evening

Maeka grabbed a headset, flicked a few switches and handed Ran said headset. "Alright Mouri-san, you may speak freely… I've just hooked you up to a private connection to Meitantei-kun. I'll even leave if you want me to."

"Thank you, Mage-san," Ran said, accepting the headset and slipping it on. "And you don't have to leave." Ran moved the microphone closer to her mouth. "Shinichi…?"

Conan, Hattori, and Camel ducked back into one of the previously checked room and Conan pulled out his bowtie, adjusting it to the right frequency. "R-ran…?"

"Shinichi, what's going on?! I come back to the agency to grab something I left and there's some strange truck across the street with Mage-san, Megure-keibu, Agasa-hakase, and some others inside! Tell me what's going on!" Ran exclaimed.

"Ran," Conan sighed, watching as Camel peeked outside the room they were in. "I'll explain _everything_, and I mean _everything_, after this. I promise, just… hold on until then. It'll all be over soon." Conan jumped slightly when a gun went off.

"Shinichi!?"

"Shinichi, what happened?!" Agasa asked, staring at the screen showcasing three green dots positioned outside one of the rooms.

Conan let out a curse, switching his hold on the bowtie to his left hand while his right grabbed the gun hidden underneath his shirt. "We were spotted by a few members."

"KID got the infra-red sensors set up," Maeka announced, typing on a separate, smaller computer. "I'm connecting it to the main screen now… Meitantei, you've got seven agents headed your way from the direction of the main entrance. You might wanna set some of those sleeping gas bombs KID gave you and pull down those masks."

"Right," Conan murmured, all three of them pulling out one of the bombs in question and placing them in random locations along the hallway. Hattori and Camel ran further into the building, lowering the embedded gas masks as they did. Conan also lowered his mask but stayed stationary, watching for the first signs of movement from the Organization.

"Keep moving _baaro!"_ Maeka exclaimed, unconsciously slipping into Shinichi's voice. Beside her, Ran flinched. Noticing, Maeka immediately switched back to her normal voice. "I'm sorry, that happened on accident."

Ran shook her head. "No, that's alright… It just startled me, is all."

Maeka then flipped a few switches, effectively cutting off Ran's connection with Conan. Before Ran could protest, Maeka said, "I don't want you to hear this… This is a life or death situation, Mouri-san. Please understand that. And I'm not exaggerating in the least bit."

Ran looked at the screen in front of her. 'What have you gotten yourself into Shinichi?'

"_Maeka… As much as I _love_ fooling around with the crows, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold them off any longer,"_ KID's voice came in through Maeka's headset.

"Just hang in there KID, I'm headin' your way," Maeka replied. "Oh, by the way, how many of them are armed?"

"_Only three: Chianti, Korn, and Snake,"_ KID answered, once again using ventriloquism. He threw several smoke bombs, saying in a louder voice, "What is it that is deaf, dumb, and blind and always tells the truth?"

Snake growled. "_You_ when I'm _done_ with you!"

"Aww! That's so sweet~!" KID crooned. "You think I always tell the truth? So then I guess it's true when I say that you're an incompetent, idiotic, dickhead… Hey, that was alliteration! …Kind of." KID threw another smoke bomb and discretely placed a small box on the floor, hidden behind a conveniently placed box. "But sadly, that was incorrect. The _correct _answer is a mirror… which you should probably look at, you look hideous~!" Provoked once again, Snake took a blind shot in the direction he heard KID's voice come from. "Missed~!"

Maeka chuckled, shaking her head, "You're having fun with these insults and jabs KID… I can tell." She grabbed a bundle of white that was resting on one side of the truck. In a flash, the thief was dressed in her white uniform, half-mask in place. Maeka looked over at Ran, "Mouri-san… please step out of the truck and head back to your friend's house. I don't want you near my destination and I know Kudo-san would have my head if I allowed it—"

"NO!" Ran retorted. "I don't care what Shinichi thinks about whatever's going on! Shinichi's in danger and I want to be there, no matter what. I refuse to let him slip from my grasp again!"

Maeka sighed, picking up several small electronics and stowing them in hidden pockets. "Then you'd better not leave this truck!" she said harshly. She turned to Agasa, "Agasa-hakase, take over the controls." The professor nodded and Maeka swung herself onto the roof of the truck and used her grappling hook to get herself onto the roof of a nearby building. She then leapt off the roof and activated her glider, flying towards the headquarters of the Black Organization.

* * *

Sato, Takagi, and Eisuke froze when they heard the cocking of a gun. "What are you doing here… Ei-chan?" came a quiet voice from behind Eisuke.

"Nee—" Eisuke was cut off by Mizunashi Rena aka Hondou Hidemi aka Kir shoving her gun against Eisuke's back.

"Be quiet," Kir hissed softly. "There are cameras in this hall. And I don't want my real reason of being here to be revealed."

Keeping their hands raised, Sato and Takagi looked at each other before Sato said, quietly as well, "…Are you an ally?" Kir nodded subtly. "Then I don't think we have to worry about cameras. Maeka dealt with all the security barriers before we got this far in."

"I'm still not taking chances," Kir murmured. "Keep up the act." The three 'captives' nodded discreetly.

"Nee-chan," Eisuke said almost inaudibly, "I have a piece of paper in my back pocket explaining everything… in case I ran into you."

Kir once again nodded subtly. She used the gun to push Eisuke further down the hall, Sato and Takagi walking in front of him, hands raised. In a louder voice, Kir said, "Don't you dare think of escaping." As she said this, she utilized a bit of sleight of hand in order to grab the aforementioned piece of paper. The hat she was wearing shielded her eyes as she quickly read the contents of the note. To Eisuke, she whispered, "No one else is down this hall except us and Anokata. I can take you to him under the pretext of finding some intruders."

* * *

KID noticed the advancing thief first. With an inward grin, KID threw another smoke bomb and took the brief time he had to place another box on the corner of the roof. "Hmm," KID mused as he swiftly moved around the perimeter of the roof. "What's another riddle I know?"

"Enough of your goddamned riddles!" Snake exclaimed, whirling around in an attempt to track KID's movement.

"Humor me," KID replied before launching into another riddle. "This is about a naughty trio: I give you a group of three. One is sitting down, and will never get up. The second eats as much as is given to him, yet is always hungry. The third goes away and never returns."

"M-mage!" one of the other Organization members, Tiger, stuttered. The operative was facing the opposite direction, his eyes now focused on the approaching figure.

"Now, now, Mage has nothing to do with this riddle!" KID answered, masking his worry for his partner as her figure grew larger and larger. Snake, however, disregarded the thief in front of him in favor of locating the other thief. In order to distract Snake and his minions, KID threw another batch of smoke bombs, slipping on a gas mask as he threw out a few stink bombs.

In the confusion, Mage was able to approach the building undetected so when most of the smoke had cleared, the effects of Mage's approach were clear. Chianti was sloped over the window sill, unconscious, her rifle falling into the room she was occupying. With a smirk, Mage tucked away the Stun-Gun Wristwatch in a hidden pocket and made a narrow circle around the headquarters. Grinning, KID used his card gun and shot a single playing card at Snake—rather, Snake's _gun_. At that same time KID, gas mask still in place, activated the boxes he had placed around the building, totaling at about seven boxes. Gas swiftly consumed the rooftop. KID remained composed while the other four on the roof became disorientated, coughing. With a curse, Snake grabbed a second gun from the inside of his jacket and took a blind shot at Mage, who only barely noticed it. The bullet missed its intended mark but did rip through Mage's upper left arm, penetrating and tearing through the wing behind it. The smoke began to clear and Snake, Widow, Shark, and Tiger were lying on the ground, passed out.

'Shit!' KID ran to the edge of the roof, ripping off his gas mask as he went. He looked up just in time to see Mage switch her grip on the gun from her left hand to her right. Mage aimed her gun at the building behind KID, the building where Korn was situated, and shot… seconds before Korn shot himself. Not waiting to see if the projectile (either of them) found its mark, KID reached for Mage's free hand, latching onto a conveniently placed pole, probably from a fence that use to line the building. Thank kami for his and her speedy reaction time and hand-eye coordination for both their gloved hands contacted and latched onto the other. A brief flash, a memory, of a similar incident crossed KID's mind. 'No! I'm _not_ gonna let that happen again!'

A sharp hiss brought KID's thoughts back down to earth and he jerked his free hand up to his mouth, using his teeth to yank the white glove off and grimacing internally as he saw the growing red stain on Mage's arm. 'Damn it, I'm straining the injury she got from the gun shot.'

Mage threw her own gun up onto the roof and mimicked the action KID performed, pulling off her white glove with her teeth. Both thieves froze for a millisecond when one of their gloves slackened, Mage recovering first and extending her glove-free hand to KID who grabbed on and began pulling her up.

* * *

Mage took a shaky breath when she had both her feet (rather, knees) on solid ground. She pulled off the glove on her left hand and threw it aside, accepting the bottle of glue KID held out to her and smearing the clear liquid on her fingertips. "Thanks," she murmured.

"For what? The save or the glue?" KID grinned, leaning back on his heels.

"Both, I guess." Mage looked at the building to her left, staring at the window leveled with the roof of their current location. She sighed, "Probably should call in the FBI and tell them to get the crows up here… KID, I snuck in some handcuffs on your person. They should be in one of your hidden pockets. We can use them to cuff Snake and his friends. We're a bit too far away to get Chianti and Korn but they should be out for a while." Mage looked at the sleeping forms of Chianti and Korn; their heads slouched over the window sills.

"Idiots. Didn't bolt when you shot them," KID remarked, locating the mentioned handcuffs and walking over to the unconscious Snake. "Wow, you brought the exact amount we needed."

Mage laughed, "I took them by surprise… obviously. And that was pure chance… the handcuffs, that is." Mage joined KID, grabbing two pairs of handcuffs and striding over to Widow and Shark, securing the two pairs onto the wrists of the syndicate members.

"Yeah okay, got it." KID picked up the last remaining set of handcuffs and attached them to the fourth member on the rooftop, Tiger. "By the way, how are you gonna get the fourteen members in Europe arrested?"

Mage shrugged, "Not sure. I can get Raven arrested thanks to her dance lessons… she never liked using fake names apparently. Crocodile or 'Cock' as I called him, much to his annoyance, will be harder. I doubt Raven would talk and we probably won't get anyone in Japan to spill the beans. Then again… I successfully hacked into _Their_ database so I might be able to pull out identities and or addresses. I don't know.. I'll find some way to get them behind bars… _all_ of them. T-Rex, Dragon, Lion, Wolf, Bear, Hawk, Iguana, Griffin, Chameleon, Piranha, Cougar, and Cheetah." Mage shuffled through her hidden pockets, avoiding from using her injured arm. She pulled out a mini headset and placed it in her ear, searching for the right channel on her radio. "James-san? Megure-keibu? Can either of you hear me… it's Mage."

"Ah, Mage-san! We were beginning to worry about you." Megure answered first.

"What's going on? Is something wrong?" FBI agent James Black followed up.

"No, no. Other than a few scratches." KID snorted, masking the sound as a cough. "We're fine. But we need you to track Tantei-kun's transmitter signal. There should be two of them. Be sure not to confuse them with the signals from the tracker-stickers on me. When you reach the fifth floor of both the buildings, you should find either Chianti or Korn."

"Got it," the two older men replied. Mage let out a sigh before using her right hand to pull out the devices she brought along with her, setting them on the rooftop.

"Looks like we're almost there," Megure murmured, examining a screen nearby that showed a rapidly moving dot heading towards an area that had been shaded red on the screen.

"_Keibu, James-san!"_ Maeka—or Mage's— voice rang through. _"Call your other agents into the open now! The crows just got some backup."_

The truck jerked to a stop just has Megure and James had carried out Maeka's order. Those in the back of the truck could hear the reason for the truck's abrupt stop: several gunshots rang out. Ran jumped when she heard the first several gunshots. "Don't worry, Ran-kun," Megure addressed her. "This truck has been reinforced… It's bulletproof."

"All except the fiber-glass windows," James added. "But that was a known factor, our driver's safe. I'm sure he ducked under the wheel when he noticed the guns.

"D-daijoubu…? Haibara-kun?" the man in his late fifties asked the young scientist, the two of them tucked into the small space in front of the seats.

Haibara lowered her hands from where they were previously, over her head, and nodded. "Y-yeah… I'm okay." Haibara examined the floor around her, the small pieces of crumbled glass encircling her. She swiped away the small pieces from her person as the driver, Agent Samuel Brenner, carefully peeked over the dashboard. Haibara, in the meantime, dug around the compartments around her, searching for something to (even _slightly_) hide her identity. She finally located a blue baseball cap and she settled it over her hair, hiding any loose strands underneath the cap as she slipped on the spare tracking glasses (they had fallen off during the sudden break). Haibara, going against her better judgment, chanced scanning the scene outside the truck. Three vans similar to the one she was in currently were parked in front of them several FBI and police officers alike seeking shelter behind the vans, guns at the ready. Being able to see past the windows of the vans, the scientist spotted several people dressed in black and returning fire. 'The Organization… Not going down without a fight?' It was then that Haibara's attention was drawn to a single white object lying on the ground several meters away from the truck. With a sudden realization, Haibara utilized the zooming function of the tracking glasses to focus in on the white object. 'A… _glove?'_ Haibara turned off the zoom and glanced over at the agents (and officers) firing back at the Organization members. 'Wait a minute… that glove… it could only belong to either KID or Mage. So that means… _fingerprints can be lifted._ Their identities could be identified by _Them_.' The passenger door flung open and Haibara jumped, running for the abandoned glove before rational thought could take over. Just as she reached the glove, she was tackled to the ground.

* * *

The faint light seeping under one of the doors in front of them led Jodie, Shiratori, and Hakuba to it, flanking either side of the door. Shiratori, being closest to the doorknob, twisted it slightly before opening it altogether. The three entered, guns raised. Inside was a dark, wooden desk, the lamplight set to a low setting. A bottle of wine sat next to the light and in the darkness, the three of them could pick out a figure sitting in the chair behind the desk. "I've been expecting you."

Jodie let out a growl, _"Vermouth."_

"Why if it isn't FBI agent Jodie Starling. Who knew we'd be meeting again in this situation." A wine glass was set on the desk, the red liquid inside almost gone. "Have you ever tried Merlot? It's actually a very fitting name for one of the kindest Organization members in our ranks: light, fruity, smooth… much like Takashi Hiromi… Don't you think, Hakuba Saguru-kun?" Hakuba gritted his teeth. "Of course, it's been a while since you've met her… you may not even remember much about her." The bottle on the table tilted slightly, the red liquid flowing into the glass sitting on the desk. "Speaking of… how _is_ your _precious_ friend? Doing fine, I hope? Does she bear a grudge against me?"

'Doesn't seem like it,' Hakuba thought in response. Looking at the general area of the desk, Hakuba replied with, "Strange to hear such amiable words coming from a _murderer_."

"Touché… I suppose I deserved that," Vermouth remarked with a barely distinguishable shrug. "But if you _must_ blame someone, don't blame me, blame my superior. Or, rather, my superior's _order_."

"You could have defied those orders!" Hakuba retorted as Vermouth stood and moved around the desk, leaning against it. Vermouth shrugged once again.

"I guess it's safe to assume that the cat's out of the bag… Kasuma-chan must not have liked that. I feel bad for her… it must have been hard… hiding her knowledge of this Organization from her closest and_ only_ friend. The only one we'd allowed."

Gun—_Kasuma's_ gun—still raised, Hakuba swore lightly in English before gritting out, "Because of you… because of _you_ she's had to live secretly in fear!" Hakuba thought back to a moment of weakness—the _only _one he ever saw—that had occurred in the silence of the dark night. 'That's not something she should hide from her _childhood friend_.'

Vermouth didn't respond, instead focusing her gaze on Shiratori. "And you're the inspector at that mall from the mahjongg serial murder case… not that you'd've _recognized_ me due to my disguise."

"Ah re? We have intruders?" a new voice said from the shadows. The three 'intruders' turned to the voice. The figure stepped closer to the desktop lamp, its light slowly illuminating the newcomer's face.

* * *

"Good." Maeka breathed out a sigh of relief as she—very sloppily—wrapped her upper arm with gauze. "It seems the officers and agents are holding up against the crows." No sooner than she said this, a hoard of FBI agents and police officers alike burst out onto the roof, prepared to apprehend the unconscious criminals. Kaitou and Maeka both noticed other officers through the windows of the adjacent buildings, cuffing Chianti and Korn and carrying them away. It was then that Maeka noticed a small figure running in the direction of the Organization headquarters. She leaned over the roof to get a closer look before letting out a curse. She grabbed her abandoned gun and pulled out a grappling hook from it, attaching it to the edge of the roof and releasing it, sending her zooming down the building. When she was merely a meter above the ground, Maeka let go of the gun, dropping to the ground before recovering shortly and tackling the figure. Below her, Haibara yelped and began to struggle. "Stay down, Shiho." By this point, Maeka's stunt had been noticed by the opposing force and they collectively began shooting in her direction. Using her body as a shield, Maeka still had the right mindset to scold the shrunken scientist. "What were you_ thinking?!_ Running out like that…"

Haibara flinched as she sensed—not quite _felt_—a bullet fly by. "I couldn't let that abandoned glove get picked up by_ Them._ If _They_ were to get a hold of it, no doubt, _They'd_ have either yours or KID's identity. You'd've been in great danger." Maeka didn't respond and if it weren't for the curse that exited her mouth, Haibara would've thought she had passed out.

"What are you waiting for?" she mumbled to herself. "Get something _in between _us." As if on cue, Agent Brenner skillfully maneuvered the truck so the body was blocking the Organization's view of the thief and shielded scientist. Maeka pushed herself up and helped Haibara up as well. The two of them headed towards the passenger seat door. Maeka opened the door and let Haibara jump in first before she followed, closing and locking the door. Haibara opened the small door leading to the back of the truck and climbed through, Maeka following close behind.

"A-ai-chan…?" Haibara had stiffened as she noticed Ran inside the truck. "What are you doing here? Is Conan-kun with you?"

"I'm sorry to cut your inquiry short but now's not the time, Mouri-san," Maeka said, shrugging off her white suit jacket and the bullet-proof vest under it. As she worked on the computer some more, she began digging around the vest, pulling out bullets when she came across them.

"Have your men run into any other operatives inside the building?" Haibara asked both James and Megure.

"Yes," James began. "Although they're all underlings. None of them have run into the higher-ups."

"However that's not the case with the initial group we sent in," Megure continued. "Jodie-kun, Shiratori-kun, and Hakuba-kun ran into Vermouth and some other agent we haven't gotten the name of. Sato-kun, Takagi-kun, and Eisuke-kun ran into Kir and Kudo-kun, Hattori-kun and Camel-kun still haven't found anybody."

"I wonder if I should lead a group in there…" Maeka mused. "I can bring some of my smaller equipment inside and we can use the thermal sensors through my connection with KID's equipment."

"But you're injured!" Ran protested, noticing the bloodstained sleeve of Maeka's suit and shirt. "Not to mention you just pulled out at _least _ten bullets from that vest!"

Maeka gave her a quick smirk. "That hasn't stopped me before, now has it?"

"Maeka's sustained far more injuries than I have," KID said, rapidly closing the back doors behind him. He also began removing his white suit and the vest underneath it, picking out bullets as Maeka had done previously. "Then again, she's been at this far longer than I have."

"Granted, a good number of said injuries were because of Holmes but there were a number dealt by the Organization's strikes." Maeka slipped the vest and suit back on and swiveled to face the computer.

"But Hakuba-san never hit you… didn't he?"

"Well that's true but… what I _meant_ was that Holmes _indirectly_ caused those injuries. I can't even count the number of times I've crashed because of Holmes destroying my glider." Maeka turned to the scientist next to her and handed her something, whispering, "Will you be able to find an antidote now?"

Haibara examined the flash drive in her hand. "Is this…?"

"The Apoptoxin file? Yes," Maeka answered, nodding. "Uncorrupted, free of any tricks and traps… I finally found it buried deep in the abandoned files. I'm sure you know but protect that drive as if your life depended on it." Haibara nodded and slipped the attached lanyard around her neck, slipping the drive inside her shirt. Maeka let out a quick sigh then walked over to one of the boxes in the truck, pulling out a pistol and checking the magazine. She accepted the headset KID extended to her and slipped around her neck.

"I already asked some of my men to wait for you just inside the building," James told the thief to which Maeka nodded in thanks.

She looked over at KID, "Keep an eye on Mouri-san. No offense." Maeka glanced briefly at Ran. "But I don't trust that you'll stay put in here. Just know that this is the safest place for you and if you leave it, KID is entitled to use whatever method to get you back in here." With that said, Maeka jumped out of the truck and disappeared into the shadows.

* * *

It took a while, but Conan, Hattori, and Camel were able to run into life when they opened the last door in the hallway they were occupying currently. One side of the room was lined with computers. Throughout the rest of the room, tables were spread out randomly and sitting in one of those tables in the back of the room were two figures. Even in the dimly lit room, the long, silver hair was easy to distinguish. "Gin!" Conan spat out.

From across the room, Gin's scoff could be clearly heard. "I knew there were intruders." Gin stood and examined the three intruders. "Although I'm surprised the security system didn't pick up on you rats. I suppose the brief flicker of lights earlier was the main reason."

"Aniki," Vodka's voice made itself known just then. "What should we do about them?"

"Tch." Gin pulled out a gun in response, which Vodka followed in example. This only led Conan, Hattori and Camel to raise their own weapons. It was then that Gin took in the presence of the intruders fully. "You're the brat from the Mouri Detective Agency," he almost growled.

Conan let a smirk slip past his previous visage. 'Looks like you were right, Mage.'

"_Ne, how high is the likelihood that Gin'll recognize me as a shrunken Kudo Shinichi?" Conan asked the thief after he had pulled her aside during their final meeting._

_Maeka didn't take long to respond, only pausing for a minute before saying, "Not likely. Gin doesn't remember those that he kills… or allegedly kills in your case," she added as an afterthought. "You've got nothing to worry about."_

'I hope that reigns true,' Conan thought as he pointed his gun in Gin's direction. "And now I'm the brat who's gonna bring you down!"

Before either side could react, a loud voice resonated from the direction of the hallway. "FBI! We have you surrounded! Drop your weapons!"

The thing that had Gin and his partner freezing was not the order but the _voice_ of the owner. It was that of the deceased, "Akai Shuichi."

"Guess again," the same voice but with slightly different intonations said as many FBI agents stormed the room. The speaker, however, did not reveal themselves.

"Tch, show yourself bastard!" Vodka exclaimed, gun at the ready.

That same voice sighed. "Now that's just takin' the fun outta it but fine… if you vermin are so adamant about it…" There was a pause and then Masked Magician walked into the room nonchalantly resting her pistol on her shoulder. "I don't believe we've officially met… I'm Masked Magician. You and your co-workers tried to kill me… twice… Obviously, you failed." She ran her right hand through her blonde wig as she stopped next to Hattori. _"I'm gonna provoke Gin and Vodka, so expect some gunfire. When that happens, get out of the way,"_ she whispered to Hattori, using ventriloquism so as not to alert Gin and Vodka. To the Organization operatives, she said, "You call yourselves an 'unstoppable, untraceable underground organization' but you don't deserve that name. You should at least do a better job on your hits." Mage slipped into the voice of Akai Shuichi. "Otherwise, the Silver Bullets will destroy you!"

"Kisama!" Vodka hissed. Without any warning, both Gin and Vodka raised their guns and shot at Mage. As per Mage's instructions, everyone dived out of the way. Everyone, that is, except Mage, who fell backwards, a smirk on her face.

"Mage!" Camel made to move to the thief's side but was stopped by Conan.

"We were told to get out of the way," Conan told the agent. "She gave us a chance to get out of the line of fire, we need to use it."

Hattori cursed quietly. "I can't believe we're not only trusting but _following_ the words of an internationally wanted thief! And a suicidal one at that."

"We have no choice. She's our lifeline right now," Conan murmured, tipping over one of the tables as a make-shift shield. "She should be fine."

Right on cue, Mage sat up and brushed off her suit. One of the bullets dropped to the ground, having struck her mask—_bulletproof_ mask—while the other bullet was deftly pulled out of her Kevlar. "Come now, Gin, Vodka, did you _really _think I'd be dumb enough to come in here without extra precautions? You should've known better seeing as I've managed to evade _every single_ one of your organization's hits." Before Gin or Vodka could act, Mage lifted her left hand and fired two successive shots, effectively shooting their guns out of their hands. Everyone else in the room chose that time to storm the operatives.

Without another word, Mage ran out of the room and down one of the halls. She pulled out her minicomputer and examined the digital scan of the building's blueprints before turning a corner. It didn't take long for her to locate her desired destination. From inside, she could already hear gunshots firing back and forth. _"How's it goin' in there, Maeka?"_ Came KID's voice from the small headset in her ear.

"Several agents are dealing with Gin and Vodka and I'm about to enter another room," Mage whispered, carefully peeking into the room she was standing outside of. Scanning what she could see of the room, Mage ran through several calculations before ducking low and diving into the room, hiding behind the closest table, the piece of furniture having already been knocked on its side.

"Ma…Maeka?" Hakuba had just ducked behind the same table Mage was hiding behind when he took in her presence.

Mage gave the detective a quick salute before pulling out spare magazines and tucking them in a breast pocket. "How are the odds?" she asked him.

"With your addition just now, that makes it four to two, our favor. However, this is a weapons room so _They_ have the upper hand," Hakuba explained, ducking further behind the table as a bullet whizzed by.

"Who are we up against?"

"Vermouth and Bourbon," Hakuba answered quickly.

"Lovely." Mage let out a sigh as she peered around the table's edge, surveying the scene. Just as Hakuba said, Vermouth and Bourbon had the upper hand and they weren't afraid to show it. The two agents were standing across the room—out in the open—guns raised and with an arsenal of artillery behind them. "Here goes nothing," Mage mumbled. Before Hakuba could inquire about her statement, Mage jumped out into the open, gun poised. Hakuba made to pull her back but stopped when he noticed the reaction of a certain enemy across the room. Vermouth's armed arm lowered slightly and her eyes widened marginally.

'Mage… caught her off-guard…?' Hakuba then noticed the movements of the other Organization operative. "Mage duck!" he yelled as Bourbon began raising the rifle in his hand in Mage's direction.

"DON'T SHOOT!"

That exclamation had everyone in the room freezing save Mage, who held her gun steady and pointed towards the two operatives. Vermouth was giving Bourbon the iciest glare anyone in the room had seen. Flicking his light hair off to one side, Bourbon glared back at Vermouth, searching her eyes for her motive. "Don't tell me you have _favorites_," he uttered with a sneer. "You've gotten weaker, Vermouth and if _you_ don't do anything about these intruders, then I will. Then _I'll_ become Anokata's favorite." With that said, Bourbon pointed his gun in Mage's direction and shot. Mage threw a smoke bomb at the last minute and disappeared in the smoke.

Meanwhile, Vermouth turned her gun on Bourbon. "I told you _not to shoot_, did I not!?" Suddenly, both of their guns were shot out of their hands, followed by the activation of a smoke bomb. With the smoke cleared, Vermouth and Bourbon were being restrained by Jodie and Shiratori and Mage was gripping her pistol in one hand, her own handmade gun in the other.

"Oi, you okay Mage?" Jodie yelled from across the room, having an easier time in restraining Vermouth than Shiratori.

Hiding the true extent of the pain she was feeling, Mage stowed her handmade gun in an inside pocket and lowered her left hand. "I'll probably have a few broken ribs but other than that…"

"Shiratori-keibu, where's your radio?" Hakuba asked as he stood up fully and headed for the inspector. Shiratori informed the detective of the radio's location and Hakuba retrieved it, notifying Megure and requesting that he send in the police.

There was a crackling coming from the earphones of Mage's headset. Pressing her hand against it, she listened closely to the voice that made itself known, _"Maeka-san… we've got Anokata. Ki—I mean Nee-chan has him restrained."_

"Great," Mage replied. "We've handled everything on our end too. Megure-keibu's sending in the police now. Hang tight." Eisuke gave an affirmative response and Mage walked closer to the restrained operatives. She stopped just shy of Hakuba, who had finished his conversation with Megure, and whispered, "Expect me at your place after this. I've got something you might want to know." As she said this, her gaze was locked with Vermouth's, the blonde actress examining the thief's features. Mage approached the actress, gazing at Jodie and silently asking her to step away from the two of them. Jodie complied reluctantly and Mage knelt in front of Vermouth. "I've got a question for you…"

**Final Notes: Curse you English class… noticing literary terms I accidently write… (oh well)  
****These next chapters will probably be closer to my first few chapters in length… maybe even longer depending on how much detail I put into them. I wanted to add more content to this chapter but it's getting a bit lengthy so hopefully it'll still work out if I wait until the beginning of the arc after the upcoming one…**

**Next chapter starts the Ta to Ka Arc, in which we zoom through 18 years of life in a couple of chapters. XD And I won't be providing chapter previews for the next few chapters due to them being Kasuma's back-story and because I don't know how exactly I'm going to split up the chapters.**


	36. Beginnings (30)

**A/N: Part one of the Ta to Ka Arc! As a note, the chapter name for this chapter and following two will be names of the first segment of the chapter.  
****Warnings: Back stories—actually more of one **_**BIG**_** back story…  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Just as a reminder, since this was only pointed out in one arc of the DC series (and since I've mentioned it about the same number of times in my **_**own **_**story), Masuyama Kenzou is Pisco…  
And you'll recgonize a scene in this due to it being one of the Extras I uploaded some time ago.**

**Today's quote is: "Why can't I make funny mistakes like Tiffany?!"—Mari-chan**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Beginnings

* * *

-17 Years Ago (May)-

* * *

At first glance, the mansion looked very ordinary. Walking in, one may marvel at the elaborate paintings or the ornate furniture, the beautifully polished spiral staircase. On one side of the entranceway were photographs of a crew of men—and women—crowding around brand new automobiles, smiles on all their faces, proud of their finished project. However, if one were to look carefully, they may stumble across one of many hidden switches which opens a secret passage way. Masuyama Kenzou, the owner of said mansion, walked down one of the aforementioned passage ways. Reaching the bottom of the steps, there came into view a hidden laboratory, a computer in the center of the room. A figure was sitting in a rolling chair in front of the computer, a soft, constant, tapping originating from the keyboard. Her brown hair never passed her shoulders and her brown eyes were focused on the screen in front of her. "Hiromi-chan, why are you down here?"

"Well, _someone _needs to be working on the Project. The higher-ups are frustrated with the little progress we've made on the Project," Takashi Hiromi answered, typing away on the computer.

"Where's Kouichi-kun?" Kenzou asked next, walking up to her and standing directly behind the chair.

"Buying some much needed supplies," Hiromi replied, laying a hand on her enlarged stomach, smiling as she felt the being inside kick.

"Ah, yes. You _are_ due sometime soon, aren't you?"

"Yes. A few weeks in fact."

"Then all the more reason you shouldn't be working. You could go into labor any day now." Kenzou picked up a folder sitting next to the computer and skimmed through it. "What about asking Akvavit and Cachaca?"

"That wouldn't do," Hiromi shook her head. "Elena-chan's pretty far along as well. Maybe in another month or so."

Kenzou also shook his head. "I'm _still_ surprised at Anokata's _continued_ ignorance of this whole situation. What if someone… were to reveal your true state. The child would never be safe."

"By 'someone'… you mean Vermouth, right?"

Kenzou sighed, "You just can't always trust her. She could suddenly decide to tell Anokata about the child. She wouldn't be safe."

"No worries there, Kenzou-san," Hiromi reassured. "Vermouth has stayed quiet about my pregnancy."

"Speaking of Vermouth and her quiet tendencies… It seems she's gone and killed another Organization member," Kenzou murmured. "Someone from Waykamatayan again."

Hiromi sighed. "That'll be her what? Third one?" Shaking her head, Hiromi turned back to the computer and continued working.

* * *

-10 Months Later-

* * *

Laughter filled the stark room. The room was close to empty. About ten people were in the brightly lit room, most of them working on the computers that were lining the white walls. In the middle of the room was a large blanket, several small toys spread out across it. A group of five adults were standing around it—rather, two were sitting, one was sitting on the blanket, one was standing, and one was leaning against a nearby table. Vermouth, otherwise known as Sharon Vineyard, was leaning against the table, swirling the red contents of a test tube as her eyes focused on those on the blanket: a young girl of about nine years of age and two babies, one finding great interest in a red rattle, the other attempting to stand upright. "Hiromi-chan," she drawled. "You'd better keep an eye on that child of yours. She's gonna be a handful… she's already trying to give Akemi-chan a hard time." Just as she said this, Akemi was thrown backwards, the happy, brown-haired bundle falling on top of her.

"Mou… Kasuma," Hiromi sighed, lifting the laughing baby off of the young girl. She tapped little Kasuma's nose lightly, "Don't give Akemi-nee a hard time now… she's also gotta watch her baby imouto, ne?" In response, Kasuma giggled and swatted at Hiromi's hand.

"What's there to watch, anata?" Takashi Kouichi asked with a brief laugh. "Shiho's too interested in her toy to do anything else."

"M-merlot…" one of the other scientists in the room walked up to the woman, extending a thin manila folder to her. "The results of the experiments have been completed." Hiromi stood and accepted the file, handing Kasuma to Vermouth, who was the closest to her. Hiromi pulled out the documents and spread them out on the table Kouichi and the other two were by. Vermouth relinquished the test tube in her hand to the woman sitting closest to her. The woman tucked her blonde hair behind one ear as she set the test tube back in an unused rack.

"So? What are the results?"

"As we expected… nothing," Kouichi sighed. "And I was so sure your theory would have gotten _something_, Elena-chan. Looks like it's back to the drawing board."

"Hiho! Hiho~!" Kasuma squealed, waving her arm in the direction of the carpet. Shiho looked up from her rattle then squealed as well, slapping the rattle against the floor, her wavy blonde hair falling in front of her eyes.

"You might as well let Kasuma-chan down, Sharon," Miyano Atsushi said as he looked down at his daughters. "Akemi can watch her for a bit, right?"

"Yeah! I got it, Tou-san," Akemi responded with a nod. Sharon shrugged and set Kasuma on her own two feet. The 10 month old child attempted to take a step on her own only to pitch forward into the awaiting grasp of Akemi.

"Anyway," Miyano Elena began, picking up the test tube with the red substance. "This sure is a troublesome liquid. It doesn't respond to anything we've tried."

"And if we can't figure out what it is, then we won't be able to duplicate it," Kouichi said, rubbing his temples as he let out a deep sigh.

Atsushi stood and walked past the three children playing on the blanket to a phone attached to the wall above one of the computers. "I suppose we should bring in more agents," he said as he lifted the phone off its receiver and inputted a number. "Akvavit here…"

"Don't tell me you're going to continue experiments with Akemi-chan, Shiho-chan, and Kasuma-chan in here? That hardly isn't a good idea," Sharon drawled as she examined a lock of her platinum blonde hair.

"We weren't planning to," Elena replied, pulling out several beakers and microscope slides.

"We were hoping _you'd_ take them," Hiromi said then, turning and leaning against the table in order to face Sharon. "You're not obligated to stick around. In fact… you're not obligated to do _anything_… at the moment, at least."

"And by 'take them,' we don't literally mean_ take them_," Atsushi butted in jokingly. "Hopefully _Vermouth_ doesn't get any ideas. We'd like our children back."

Sharon smirked. "Now why would I want to kidnap your kids? They're troublesome on their own… to kidnap all three would be hell." Sharon then walked to the three kids in question, picking up Shiho and resting her on a hip. "Now then, Akemi-chan, do you think you can help me with Kasuma-chan? Maybe give her more practice on her own two feet while we're at it?" Akemi nodded happily and pulled Kasuma up, the girl eagerly clutching onto Akemi's arm.

"We'd better get them back, _Vermouth_," Kouichi said, imitating Atsushi's earlier joking tone. Sharon carelessly waved her right hand as she exited the laboratory, the door swinging shut moments later.

* * *

-2 Years Later-

* * *

Almost no work was getting done in the lab due to an almost 3 year old Kasuma running around, giggling and curiously prodding random objects in the lab. "Merlot… why haven't you gotten Kasuma-chan a babysitter?" one of the workers by the codename of Kilju asked her superior. Kilju snatched the child up and carried the giggling girl to her mother.

"Sorry," Hiromi said, taking Kasuma from her. "Anokata forbids it unless I were to choose an Organization member to watch her. Besides anyone in this lab, the only people I would choose would be Vermouth or Pisco but with their roles in the Organization…"

"You don't her being brought along on hits?" another scientist, Marsala, finished. "Well then, Anokata didn't give you many choices, now did he? You don't have many trustworthy acquaintances in the Organization besides those two."

"And of course we're not going to leave her in the hands of Gin or Vodka… or even Tequila or Calvados. That's just stupid," Kouichi said. He glanced over at Atsushi and Elena. "And your house is too far away for us to take her there. Not to mention Akemi would have a hard time with the two of them."

Elena smiled. "With that bundle of energy known as your daughter, she would be too much for Akemi to deal with. I don't even like leaving _Akemi_ to watch Shiho on her own… she too young to be taking on that kind of responsibility but…"

"You're worried about Anokata coming across her," Hiromi finished. "Understandable." She removed several clean test tubes from a nearby cabinet using her right hand, Kasuma being held steady with her left.

"Down! Do~wn!" Kasuma protested, motioning hastily at the floor. With a sigh, Hiromi set the toddler down and she began running around the lab again.

"Anokata doesn't know of Shiho and Kasuma's existence so far but if someone were to report the workings in this lab besides Vermouth or Pisco, Anokata could find out and want to recruit them." Hiromi searched another cabinet for several chemicals, pulling out the ones she desired as she came across them. "At least this way, only one of them will be noticed… and if Kasuma's behavior as of now is any indication… Anokata would have an _extremely_ hard time with her… with her being so stubborn." The scientist searched the room for said stubborn child, who was currently attempting to climb into a revolving chair that was sitting in front of a computer. "Oi! Icariine, stop her! Please!"

"Ryokai," the male scientist replied, jogging over to the toddler and grabbing her around the waist before she could do any damage.

* * *

-1 Year Later-

* * *

A small toddler jumped down from the low platform of the play-structure, grabbing some bark chips as she lost her footing briefly. Instead of whimpering like she saw another kid doing, she giggled to herself and stood up, shaking the loose wood chips off her hands. She rotated and caught sight of her parents, the two of them waving the girl over. She complied and rapidly headed towards them. Suddenly, her foot caught a random rock lying about and she pitched foreword. Before she hit the ground, however, one arm wrapped around her waist and she was hoisted back up on her feet. "Whoopies. Daijoubu?" a woman with short blonde hair and light blue eyes asked the girl.

"Un. Heiki da yo. Arigato gozaimasu, oba-san."

"Ah ra? Kono youna teineina ko!" the woman was cut off by a little blonde boy who was clutching the woman's pant leg. She bent down to the boy and nudged him saying, in English, **"Why don't you introduce yourself?"** the girl's parents appeared just then, talking to the woman in English as well.

The girl smiled brightly, "Konnichiwa! Anata no namae wa?"

The boy stared back blankly, clearly confused. "Nihongo o rikai suru ka?" The girl continued.

It was then that the blonde woman turned back and responded, **"She asked 'What is your name?'"**

"**Saguru Hakuba."** The boy said promptly after hearing the translation. **"What's yours?"**

The girl's mother translated for her. Smiling again she answered, "Takashi Kasuma!"

"**What a pretty name… Kasuma."** Hakuba's mother responded. She nudged her son again, **"Go on. Don't be shy. Why don't you two play over there?"** the woman pointed to the play structure.

Kasuma, understanding—at least to some extent— nodded and dragged the unsuspecting toddler of male gender to the play area.

Sometime later, if you looked around, you would see two toddlers, one bearing shoulder-length brown hair and the other bearing short blonde hair. The two of them were having the time of their lives… well as much as they could, considering the two of them couldn't understand each other. Well, scratch that, for it seemed the two of them understood each other perfectly… without the use of language. Not that language wasn't used; both Kasuma and Hakuba seemed to have learned something from the other. "Kaa-chan, Tou-chan, juu eigo o kaunto suru houhou o mananda!" One happy Kasuma exclaimed, "Soshite, Hakuba-kun juu nihongo de kaunto suru houhou o mananda!"

"Well, well, let's see what you two have, ne Helen-chan?" Helen and Hiromi crouched down and looked expectantly at their respective children. Kasuma took the initiative and started, "Won… tsu… tsuri… poru… paebu… sikusu… seben… eto… naen… ten!"

The two mothers giggled and smiled knowingly before Hakuba shyly began. **"Itchy… knee… sun… she… go… rocku… shechi… hatchi… cue… ju."**

There was a short applause as Helen and Hiromi giggled again. "Yoi shigoto o tsugi no futari tomo. Hijou ni yoi shigoto gengo o shiyou toshite, saisho no jikan o." Hiromi praised as Helen said, **"A job well done, Kasuma, Saguru. We're proud of you two,"** simultaneously.

Kasuma grinned brightly then proceeded to drag Hakuba back over to the play structure with an excited, "Ikuzo, Hakuba-kun!"

* * *

-1 Year Later-

* * *

"I hope this means you're letting us in and not getting lazy," the man called out into the seemingly empty house as he and his companion toed off their shoes.

"I doubt that's the case," the man's companion replied, flicking some stray platinum blonde hair away from her face. "They know better than to leave the door unlocked."

"Tou-chan, Kaa-chan, I'm going over to Hakuba-kun's!" a little girl yelled as she rounded the corner. She stopped when she noticed the two new visitors. "Masuyama-san… Ms. Vineyard… What are you doing here?"

Masuyama Kenzou knelt down in front of the girl, placing a hand on her shoulder, "We're here to talk with Montrose and Merlot."

"Oh," the girl looked downcast, "And here I thought you were visiting for personal reasons."

"We are, darling," Sharon Vineyard answered, "_Pisco_ shouldn't have used those names."

"I could say the same thing to you, _Vermouth_," a new voice remarked. Takashi Hiromi appeared from the kitchen doorway, rubbing her hands dry with a towel. "If this is about the Project, you could have spoken with Akvavit and Cachaca. They're second highest in the Project's hierarchy."

"This isn't about the Project," Kenzou said, straightening.

"Now you've got me curious," another voice remarked. Takashi Kouichi entered just then, peering at the two visitors. "What's this about?"

"Anokata has expressed worries about your recent involvement with the Hakuba family," Vermouth began. "Were you aware of Hakuba-san's position in the police as Chief of Police?"

"When we first met, no," Hiromi answered. "Hakuba-san's wife had helped Kasuma and after that, Kasuma and their son just bonded. We couldn't pull them apart. It was only revealed to us later about his position."

"Well, Anokata _highly_ suggests that you cut all ties with the Hakubas," Sharon replied. "You know how he is… paranoid."

"You can't!" Kasuma exclaimed. Sharon looked shocked before her Poker Face replaced it again.

"And why is that, Kasuma-chan?" Kenzou asked, again kneeling in front of the girl.

"Tou-chan and Kaa-chan haven't even _met _Hakuba-ojisan! I'm the only one who's met him and even then it was very brief."

"When did you meet him?" Sharon asked, crouching down to level herself with Kasuma.

"Sometimes during lunch, Hakuba-ojisan comes home and gets a bento from Helen-obasan but he leaves for work right away."

"And you haven't told any of them about the Organization?" Sharon inquired.

"No! I'd never do that! Tou-chan and Kaa-chan always tell me to stay quiet about it… especially since they found out Hakuba-ojisan's with the police."

"And you're not lying to me?" Sharon asked.

"Sharon! You _know_ Kasuma wouldn't lie about that!" Hiromi exclaimed.

Sharon stood up, "Good. I'm just checking. Well… Kasuma-chan, dear, you are one stubborn child so even if you're forbidden, you'll find some way to still play with your new-found friend. I won't stop you." Sharon shrugged her shoulders. "I'll see what I can do about Anokata."

Kasuma exhaled, letting out the tension in her small body. She beamed at Sharon, **"Thank you Ms. Vineyard!"**

"Oh? Your English's getting better, Kasuma-chan," Sharon drawled. "Oh… that reminds me. Hiromi-chan, Kouichi-kun, you'd better keep a close eye on your daughter. Anokata has expressed interest in her. He's been thinking of recruiting her into the Organization when she gets older." Hiromi and Kouichi both stiffened at Sharon's words, Hiromi unconsciously moving a hand to Kasuma's shoulder.

"You'll have until she's about ten or eleven before she'll being training," Kenzou elaborated. "That is, if Anokata still really wants her in the Organization."

"And also watch out for that young son you have," Sharon continued, moving her gaze to Hiromi's enlarged stomach. "That new child of yours may also catch Anokata's eyes… if he'll be anything like Kasuma-chan."

Hiromi took one glance at the baby growing in her stomach before turning to Kasuma. "Kasuma, dear, go on to Saguru-kun's house okay? And be careful." Hiromi, however, didn't have anything to worry about for the door opened slightly and Hakuba Saguru peeked his head in through the door.

"**Come on, come on, Kasuma!"** he said in his accented English.

"**I coming!** Taku," Kasuma replied, running out the door, following the British boy down the street. Down the street, Helen Hakuba was standing outside a foreign-made car, the driver's seat open and a duffle bag visible through the rear window.

"Hi, Kasuma!" Helen greeted brightly. "Would you like to come with us to the pool?"

"Pool? Like a swimming pool?" Helen nodded. "Yes! I've never been to one!"

"Really?!" Helen exclaimed, taken aback. "Well then, we need to remedy that. C'mon, hop in." Hakuba was already seated in his designated car seat, Kasuma climbing into the second one in the car, Helen fastening the buckles on both of them.

Twenty minutes and a quick stop at a department store later, the two children were playing around in the water of a nearby recreation center, Helen keeping a watchful eye on the two of them. Helen couldn't help laughing a little when her son was thrown backwards into the water due to Kasuma directing a water spout in his direction. Kasuma began laughing as well as Hakuba sat up and shook his head, rubbing his eyes briefly before scurrying over to exact revenge.

* * *

"It would seem that the Child wishes to learn how to swim," Vermouth said after she had closed the door, shutting out the only light source in the dark office. Accustomed to the dark settings of the room, Vermouth saw the black chair behind the desk rotate, the figure sitting in it almost indistinguishable. However, she had no need to see the figure to know who it was, so used to his methods as she was, Anokata was easily recognizable.

"Hmmm, yes… that would be very useful for the Child to use." Anokata murmured. There was the sound of shifting around and Vermouth could make out Anokata as he leaned forward, resting elbows on the desktop. "Inform Montrose and Merlot of my wishes. And make sure the Child isn't exposed to the dangerous families of her neighborhood... _especially_ the Kudo household."

'That may prove to be difficult,' Vermouth thought. 'Their houses are very close.' Nevertheless, Vermouth nodded, "I'll see to it personally."

* * *

-2 Months Later (July)-

* * *

Silence floated out from one of the hospital rooms. Inside were all the things one would expect in a hospital room: a few couches, a small station for the building's employees, chairs scattered around the room, bedside tables, and the hospital bed itself. Takashi Hiromi was lying in aforementioned bed, another smaller form in a separate but nearby crib. Her husband, Kouichi, was seated in the bedside chair, attempting to read a book that had been grabbed off one of the shelves of the Takashi residence library at the last minute. Sharon Vineyard was seated in the couch across from the bed, her hand gently rubbing a sleeping Kasuma's back.

"What about 'Atsushi?'"

Hiromi shook her head. "That's my brother's name… besides, I don't see him as an 'Atsushi.'"

"I take it you don't want an English name?" Sharon asked as clarification. Hiromi shook her head again. "How about 'Daichi?'"

"I don't know about that. Oh, Sharon," Hiromi began as a new thought popped into her mind. "You didn't tell Anokata about him, did you?"

"Of course not," Sharon said. "I don't go back on my word. Oh, what about Yuya?"

"I don't think so." This time, it was Kouichi who answered. Just then, Kasuma rotated then sat up, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

"Oops… I was supposed to keep her asleep," Sharon murmured.

"Kasuma… do _you_ have any ideas about names for your otouto?" Kouichi asked the five year old.

Kasuma blinked several times, then rubbed her eyes some more. "…Takeo…? It means 'strong like bamboo!'"

"And he'll have to be strong to make it through what the Organization puts him through," Sharon said more to herself than anything else.

"Takeo it is."

* * *

-1 Year Later-

* * *

"You'll get dizzy!" Hakuba yelled at his friend who was spinning around in circles as the two of them headed for Beika Park.

"Will not!" Kasuma yelled back. **"I like spinning!"**

"**Ah…!"** Hakuba sped his pace to a run. **"Stop! Stop moving! Someone's behind you!"**

Not catching everything he said, Kasuma screeched to a stop, curiously raising an eyebrow. "C'mon, Shinichi! Let's go to the park! Otherwise, those riddles your Tou-san made would be for nothing!"

Kasuma looked back in the direction of the speaker, only catching the backs of two brown haired children running into the park—rather, the female was practically _dragging_ the male behind her. 'That's one of the kids I can't play with…' she thought, eyes focusing on the male with the (mostly) tame, brown hair.

"**How are you not dizzy?!"** Hakuba asked, coming to a stop in front of her.

"I'm used to it," Kasuma answered with a shrug. "When Tou-chan and Kaa-chan bring me to their work, I don't have anything to do so this is one of the ways I keep myself busy."

"**Lucky,"** Hakuba murmured. **"At least you get to **_**go**_** to their work. My father won't ever take me with him."**

"But he's a police officer right? Wouldn't that be why he doesn't take you?"

"**But police officers are cool,"** Hakuba replied. **"They help other people and stop the bad guys!"**

"**It's dangerous to be with police!" **Kasuma retorted.

"No, no, no!" the blonde six year old exclaimed, glaring at his brown-haired companion. "It's **police**, not purishi!"

"…Po-ri-su?"

"Closer, but not quite."

"Sorry Hakuba, but English is so confusing. It took me years to finally _understand_ it, let alone speak it." Kasuma exclaimed in her native language.

"And I could say the same thing about Japanese," Hakuba said slowly, pronouncing the sentence as best as he could. **"**_**That's why we're practicing, Kasuma**_**,"** he continued in English.

"Can you say that again? Something sounded wrong in that sentence," Kasuma asked, flicking her brown tresses away from her face.

Hakuba looked confused, then repeated, "And I could say the same thing about Japanese."

"You're intonation is strange."

"**No it's not,"** Hakuba retorted, crossing his arms and turning.

"Oh chill out, Hakuba. It's _con-struc-tive_."

"**Why do you call me that anyway? My name's Saguru. Not Hakuba."**

"So…?" Kasuma smiled, "Saguru sounds weird." Kasuma ran from the grassy field they were in to the neighboring patch of cement. Picking up two large pieces of bark chips, she handed one to Hakuba and sat herself down on the pavement. "Now, you write _all_ the Japanese characters three times each in Hiragana and I'll do the same for the English alphabet." She immediately began her self-assigned task. Hakuba imitated his companion and, using the bark chip as a pencil, began running through his six years of experience in order to find and write down the Japanese characters in hiragana or—as he and Kasuma preferred to say 'gana.' Likewise, their nickname for katakana had been appropriately shortened to 'kana.'

"**I hate writing gana… there're so many of them,"** Hakuba whined.

"Oh just shut up." Kasuma admonished quietly, "Or I'll have to steal your lunch."

Hakuba stopped in mid stroke to glare at Kasuma who, was staring intently at the ground, and was busying herself with slowly writing a third 'G' in the cement. "I thought you didn't like peanut butter?"

"Oh, was that brown stuff peanut butter? I thought it was Nutella." Kasuma shrugged and moved on to 'H.'

"**Nutella's darker… and you're weird,"** Hakuba stated.

"Thank you but… you've got no proof," Kasuma said, quickly finishing the last 'H' and swiftly moving onto the next letter.

"Here we go again. You and Agatha Christie," Hakuba rolled his eyes.

"Like you should be talking Mr. I'm-A-Holmes-Freak," Kasuma retorted, "And why aren't you finishing your job? I'm gonna beat you."

"**That's not fair! English has twenty-six letters. Japanese has… **_**forty**_**-six! At **_**least**_**!"** Hakuba whined once again.

"Not my fault." Kasuma shrugged, "Besides, if you work twice as fast, you should be able to beat me… maybe. You better start now, I'm already on 'O.' Oh and the stroke order on 'a' was wrong. It's like this," Kasuma held her finger up in the air drawing the character on the invisible canvas, "One... two… three. Like that."

"Urusai," Hakuba mumbled.

"Finally you pronounce something right. Too bad you chose that word… You _do_ realize that your lunch is in my backpack. I can _easily_ 'misplace' your lunch sack in a garbage can nearby. And if you tattle, I'll just focus my sweet little girl charms on your parents and _BAM_!" she snapped her fingers, the sound carrying a good distance away before she went on, "It's instant **'**_**Saguru! You apologize to Kasuma this instant!'**_" The last few sentences flowed by in a scarily accurate Mrs. Hakuba tone.

"Are you kidding me?!" Hakuba exclaimed, "Where was that English when you were trying to say **'police'**?"

"Well what do you know? That was some pretty good English if I must say so myself. I didn't know I had it in me."

Hakuba pouted, **"You must have gotten help from your parents. I always hear Mum and Dad talking to them in English."**

"So? Just because my parents help me with the language doesn't mean I understand it half the time. I still say it's confusing. There, all done." Kasuma finished off the third 'Z' and set the worn down bark chip onto the cement but not before writing out her name in very neat kanji just below the last row of letters: Takashi Kazuma, it read.

"Ne, I was always confused about that," Hakuba began. **"Why do you write your name like **_**that**_**? I thought it was Kasuma."**

"It is. Kaa-chan said there was some misunderstanding when they named me and the nurse wrote down Kazuma instead of Kasuma. It was probably the way it was pronounced..." Kasuma smirked, "And this is why you need to master your pronunciations, something like that could happen to you." Kasuma frowned at the characters of her name then crossed out the last two kanji and wrote her given name in hiragana. "Although, I like how this looks better." Kasuma pointed to the three characters she had written. "Kaa-chan said she'd try and get it changed on my birth certificate… whatever that means."

"**Yeah, yeah. Pronunciations are important, I know. Now stop rubbing it in my face."** Hakuba said, writing out his own name in his own sloppy kanji, then rewriting it in English.

"Hopefully your handwriting gets better too. That's extremely close to illegible."

"**Stop mocking me Kasuma!"** Hakuba chucked the make-shift writing utensil at the laughing girl who easily ducked out of the way.

Kasuma dug through her bag and pulled out a brown paper bag, tossing it to the six year old, who barely caught it.** "What happened to accidently 'misplacing' it?"** he muttered almost to himself.

"Don't make me rethink it," Kasuma warned. "Besides, you're always so picky!"

"**That's because most of the food here looks so weird!"** Hakuba retorted.

Kasuma grinned, pulling out her bento from her backpack. "Well, you'll have to get use to it if you're ever to survive in Japan. And haven't you heard the phrase 'Don't judge a book by its cover?' Or even the phrase 'Looks can be deceiving?'"

"**Of course I've heard of them! They're English in origin! Even still… who puts **_**eel**_** in their food?!"**

"It's better than grasshoppers," Kasuma shrugged. "I heard some countries eat those as well as other insects."

"**This is why I like England's food… there's nothing weird in it,"** Hakuba murmured.

"Then what do you say about putting _flowers_ in _tea_? That's gross too."

"**You're not supposed to actually **_**eat**_** the flowers!"**

Kasuma shrugged in response, turning over onto her stomach to eat her food. "While we're over here… you should see the Ferris wheel at the Haido Shopping Mall. It's _huge!_ Tou-chan's working but I'm pretty sure Kaa-chan can take us."

"**Haido? That's pretty far, isn't it?"** Hakuba asked as he took a bite out of his sandwich.

"Far from Ekoda, yes," Kasuma replied. "But since Beika's in between them, that puts Beika closer to Haido than Ekoda.

A bit off in the distance, a series of bells chimed and Hakuba looked around for the source. "What was that?"

"Either the clock tower in Ekoda or Teitan High School and going from the sound and how far away it sounded, it was probably Teitan… Tou-chan said they had some sort of test going on while the younger grades got out of school and said to stay clear of them."

"**Why?"**

"I don't know," Kasuma shrugged. "Probably 'cause they're _waaay_ older than us and might be mean."

As they ate, neither of the children noticed (or paid any attention to) two figures dressed in black and hiding behind a brick wall lining the park, watching the young friends.

* * *

-1 Year Later-

* * *

Kasuma bounded into the Takashi residence followed closely by an unrecognizable Sharon Vineyard. As soon as the door was closed, Sharon ripped off her mask and pulled off the brown wig she had been wearing. "Hiromi-chan, where are you? I've got your daughter!"

"What were you two doing today?" Hiromi asked as she exited the kitchen. Kouichi appeared from the library carrying a two year old Takeo, who was happily swatting at his father's hat, giggling all the while.

"Oh just some voice manipulation," Sharon answered nonchalantly.

"Sharon-san said I have great vocal chords!" Kasuma said then, smiling brightly.

"That she does," Sharon agreed. "Your daughter's got a gift… I can tell you that much. Being able to imitate almost anything around her is no easy feat… I know from experience. Of course," Sharon shrugged. "That makes your job harder if you still wish to shield her from Anokata's recruitment team. She'll attract much more attention with the revelation of this talent."

"She'd become the new _you_," Kouichi mumbled with a scowl.

"That she would," Sharon replied tersely, smirking briefly. "In any case, I should probably get going… any longer and Anokata may get antsy." With that, Sharon turned and walked out the door, closing it behind her.

"C'mon Kasuma, let's get you ready for dinner," Hiromi said, taking Kasuma's hand and leading her up the stairs to her room.

"Tou-chan and Kaa-chan's jobs are so cool! I wanna be just like Tou-chan and Kaa-chan!"

Hiromi stopped, Kouichi looking up the stairs at that exclamation. Hiromi knelt down in front of her daughter. "Kasuma, don't say that! You do _not_ want this. You can be whatever you want… a doctor, an actor, a dancer, a teacher but please… _please_ do not follow in our footsteps. Understand?"

"H-hai…" Kasuma mumbled, suddenly confused at her mother's change in attitude. The two continued into Kasuma's room. "K-kaa-chan?" Kasuma began quietly.

"Hmm? Nani?"

"Can I go to Hakuba's house after dinner?"

"I'm afraid not, dear," Hiromi said, pulling out a clean shirt and skirt (or would it be better to say skort). "Saguru-kun's family is moving back to London and they're in the process of packing up."

"What?! They're _leaving!?_ Why?" Kasuma was suddenly slouched on the floor, looking as if she was about to start crying. "Who am I supposed to play with now?"

"Come now… don't cry. A strong girl is never supposed to show her weaknesses," Hiromi said as she walked over to the girl and stroked her hair. "Otherwise, people will take advantage of you. The Hakuba family is moving because Kouhei-san was asked to come back by his superiors in Scotland Yard. They need him to assist the police there. Don't worry… I'm certain you'll see each other again." Hiromi helped Kasuma into the clothes she had picked out. "Now, how about some dinner?"

**Final Notes: Well, I suppose this cutoff works just fine. The next chapter will have a slightly larger jump since I'm only really covering the most important aspects of Kasuma's life…**

**Translation**

**Japanese  
****Un. Heiki da yo. Arigato gozaimasu, oba-san**. (Yeah. I'm fine. Thank you, Miss.)  
**Ah ra? Kono youna teineina ko!** (Eh? Such a polite child!)  
**Konnichiwa! Anata no namae wa?** (Hello! What is your name?)  
**Nihongo o rikai suru ka?** (Do you understand Japanese?)  
**Kaa-chan, Tou-chan, juu eigo o kaunto suru houhou o mananda!** (Mom, Dad, I learned how to count to ten in English!)  
**Soshite, Hakuba-kun juu nihongo de kaunto suru houhou o mananda!** (And Hakuba-kun learned how to count to ten in Japanese!)  
**Yoi shigoto o tsugi no futari tomo. Hijou ni yoi shigoto gengo o shiyou toshite, saisho no jikan o.** (Good job you two. Very good job for your first time trying out the languages.)  
**Ikuzo, Hakuba-kun! **(Let's go, Hakuba-kun!)


	37. Betrayal (31)

**A/N: Part two of the Ta to Ka Arc! Like I said last chapter, the name of this chapter is the name of the first segment of said chapter. Akai does appear in this chapter although technically, in DC canon, he doesn't infiltrate the Org until two or three years prior to the start of DC. That is the only fact I'm changing in this canon in accordance to Akai.  
****Warnings: More backstory!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): Can anyone guess what the mysterious test tube substance is? I hope I made it recognizable enough. Oh, and there are address and such in this chapter… just know that they are fake. Please don't try to search them, you won't find anything.  
****Oh and since today is Kasuma's birthday in my timezone, I wanted to upload another chapter of this story. Though I almost forgot to do that whoops... I was busy and had other things on my mind that didn't involve any of my stories.**

**Today's quote is: "Sister Linda… Police… same category."—Mr. Ward**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: Betrayal

* * *

-6 Years Ago-

* * *

A test tube. One test tube rested alone within the ensnarement of a test tube rack. Its contents floated freely. Quietly… the red substance glowing like a blood-red moon. Beakers, microscopes, and flasks littered the large black table, the table's surface contrasting with the pure white walls. Computers lined the sides of these walls, every device in the use of a worker in this lab. Everyone except one… the shared computer of Takashi Kouichi and Kazuki—now Takashi—Hiromi, aka Montrose and Merlot respectively, two of the best scientists and high up in the syndicate's social status leveled with Pisco, Chianti, and Korn and underneath Rye, Gin, Vermouth, and Anokata (in ascending order). These two sat together, hunched over a small table, Merlot sitting quietly in Montrose's lap as the pair of them read, and reread, and re-reread the papers in front of them. The two of them didn't bother hiding their relationship, not from their fellow scientists. None of them would turn them in for showing weakness (they weren't—they thought), for none of them wanted Gin in their midst. None of them even wanted to _be_ here in the first place but they all realized the consequences of leaving the organization: death. So why summon one of the best assassins to their nearly isolated laboratory? If it were Pisco or Vermouth, then that was another story. With Pisco and the head scientists, Montrose and Merlot themselves, friends and Vermouth's already frequent drop-ins, they didn't mind much. Sure, they were dangerous but they weren't the type to barge in and kill anyone in the most important section of the organization, Pandora's Box, like Gin would. For the most part, they were safe from their grasp.

But they weren't safe from Montrose's… "What the hell is _THIS_?!"

Montrose had shot up out of his chair, startling the woman on his lap as she jerked up as well. Merlot sent a worried glance to her companion and picked up another copy of the now crumpled sheet of paper. She moved back over to him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Calm down, honey," she said softly.

"I _can't_ calm down." Montrose continued in a quieter voice, "Do you _see_ this?" the crumpled paper appeared again and Merlot responded by sighing. Her response was taken as a 'yes,' "Do you realize what could happen if they found the solution to this? People weren't meant to live forever!"

"Montrose, we've worked on this for years and we _still_ haven't found a way to duplicate it. It must not _want_ to be copied; they won't get the elixir for the Fountain of Youth. From what I heard from Pisco, Waykamatayan lost the original source and Vermouth's been killing people 'in the know' whenever she finds them with their guard down. This abomination will be safe for a while. But we can't act out; we have to protect Kasuma and Takeo."

"We have to _leave _this place… I've known that but…" Merlot interrupted him by wrapping her arms around his neck from behind and placing a soft, quick kiss on his cheek.

"Ah re re? You two look comfy," a familiar, female voice commented.

Merlot pulled away slowly, intent on not revealing to the speaker the shock that the comment gave her. "Did ridding the world of that magician really ease this project? I've always wondered… You know, it's his anniversary today. Snake killed him exactly three years ago…"

The new visitor flicked away some of her long, platinum blonde hair before leaning on one side of the small table. "Who knows? How did you find out about that in the first place? The information wasn't supposed to be leaked from Waykamatayan to Ubique."

"There are birds, Vermouth. This place may be filled with crows but there _are_ some small little sparrows with an ear for information," Merlot riddled.

"You wouldn't happen to want to slip some of that information to _me_ would you? Maybe I could find some juicy details from one of them," Vermouth commented, her icy blue eyes demanding an answer out of her. "You _do_ know, Merlot, that it's your job to notify _Anokata_ about any traitors."

"Now, now," Merlot began, "I didn't say anything about traitors. If that were the case, someone, by now, would have ratted them out."

"So you're saying there are no rats?"

'Well, except for the FBI agent…' Montrose and Merlot thought simultaneously before Merlot answered, "I would have turned them in if there were. Do you really think that low of me Vermouth? I'm hurt."

"Well, I'll leave you to your work. We're hoping for good headway." Vermouth waved sloppily and promptly left the lab.

Montrose let out a sigh as Vermouth left and angrily threw the destroyed sheet of paper into the garbage can. "I can't _stand_ that woman! She just gets worse with each passing year. Why was she here anyway…? I thought she was moved to the American sector last month."

"Oh but you know her tendency to ignore orders. She does things on her own… and she's Anokata's favorite, so no one would _dare_ deny her."

Montrose growled, exasperated. "I can't focus now." In a louder voice, he announced, "Let's take a break for today and start again tomorrow."

Their fellow scientists packed their things and departed swiftly, thankful for the early release. After the last man left the room, Montrose closed and locked the door, pulling the blinds on the door and window down, blocking anyone from peeking inside the lab. The lone test tube was approached by Montrose and the man seized the tube, throwing the elixir filled object against the wall. The glass shattered and the red liquid dripped down the white wall, an accurate depiction of blood oozing down said white wall. Merlot started to protest but held her tongue as she curiously watched the furious man stride over to the main database in the lab and skillfully delete anything and everything about their project. Merlot finally found her voice, "Honey, stop please. You can't do this… Kasuma and Takeo will be in dang—"

"I know!" Montrose yelled. He started again in a quieter voice, "I know, but it's too late! Kasuma's already in danger. She's held their interest for years and they've recently decided to enter her in their ranks! She's eleven! We can't submit her to that, she already knows too much. And Takeo will be next; they're both in grave danger and our staying in the syndicate will not help their situation. Therefore, I'm destroying everything about this strange elixir and we're all going to relocate. Simply put: We're betraying the organization."

"'Betraying the organization means death, always remember that.'" Merlot mumbled, quoting Pisco's words when the two of them had first entered the ranks of the syndicate and were given their code names.

"Then so be it." Montrose answered.

* * *

-2 Months Later-

* * *

"Where _are_ they?!"

"No one knows… Boss," Vermouth answered, keeping her distance in case Anokata decided to act upon his anger. "They just disappeared… their house has been evacuated… there's absolutely no evidence of them left. If they left the country, then they left under assumed names."

"And the Child?"

"Of course, they took the Child with them. They wouldn't dare leave her alone to fend for herself."

"Hmm…" Anokata leaned forward in his seat, hand folded with his chin resting atop it. "You're very partial of this Child… How about a test?"

"A test?" Vermouth quirked an eyebrow.

"Yes, a test. To test your loyalty," Anokata explained.

"You already know where my loyalties lay, Boss," Vermouth replied.

"Nevertheless, I'm testing you: Kill that family." It was too dark in that room for Anokata to notice Vermouth freeze in response. "They destroyed the Project anyway; they were asking to be cancelled. Now Akvavit and Cachaca have to build it up from scraps. Oh, and make sure to kill _everyone_. Even the Child. I don't care how useful she could be; kill her. Her parents gave her a death sentence the minute they destroyed the lab."

"I'll get right on it," Vermouth answered, giving a quick bow before leaving the room. For the first time in years, her poker face was unable to hide what she was feeling, her worry, grief, and pain shown in her icy blue eyes. 'It looks like I can't keep my promise to you… Hiromi. Let's hope you've got a good hiding spot…'

"Looks like something's bothering the unbreakable Vermouth," a deep, gruff male voice said then.

Poker face clicking fully into place, Vermouth let out a smirk. "Oh, I don't know about that… Rye." Her light blue eyes locked with his olive green ones. As per usual, Moroboshi Dai's long black hair was peeking out of his favorite dark blue beanie and his hands were in his pockets.

The young agent smirked. "It would be best for you not to show and weakness… there are plenty of other operatives just itching to catch you slip up so they can eliminate you."

"Hmph… are you _really _telling _me_ what I should do…? Your _superior_?"

"No," Rye answered nonchalantly. "It was merely a suggestion. You, by any means, don't have to listen to me. After all… I'm not as powerful as you in terms of the Organization's hierarchy." Keeping the conversation brief, Rye continued on his way, leaving Vermouth to herself.

* * *

-10 Months Later-

* * *

"Is Mom sick again?" the twelve year old girl asked, peering expectantly at a man with black hair that was thrown around in a constant bed head.

"Mommy will get better right?" another child, a seven year old with bright, innocent blue eyes and dark hair much like his father's messy mop asked, "Mommy _always_ gets better! Right onee-chan?" he turned his head to look at the girl behind him.

At first, the girl didn't respond in favor of staring at the closed door behind her father. The doctor, a very kind family friend, (the only one who knew the _whole_ story) was still inside running tests and the like (what do they _do_ anyway?) 'Those jerks! _They_ did this to Kaa-chan, _They're_ the ones killing her!' she thought angrily. 'And thanks to _Them_, we can't even take Kaa-chan to get a proper check-up.' "Of course, Takeo. And Kaa-chan will get better this time too." She said, not believing the statement herself. Constantly being around so many chemicals was never good for anyone. 'I wonder why Tou-chan wasn't affected in the same way. He was _always_ with her but all those chemicals didn't do anything to him.' She turned to her otouto. "Takeo, why don't you try out that new game on your Game Boy?"

"Okay! But you have to play it with me. We can beat the bad guys together!" Takeo ran off, climbing the stairs to reach his room.

"I hate _Them_," the girlhissed, dropping her mask in order to let her true feelings show. "I hate _Them_ all!"

"Kasuma," the man began, placing his hands on her shoulders, "I know how you feel, believe me I do. But there's nothing we can do to change the past. My becoming Montrose and your mom becoming Merlot, we can't change that but we can start over. No more syndicate, or codenames, or gems that cry tears of immortality. It's a new life. And maybe…" the man chuckled, "maybe we will inspire others to rebel as well. We need to take this group down one chess piece at a time."

"But if they find us… you said they presented an interest in me. What would they do to me?"

"They would bring you into their rankings. Just like they're doing to Atsushi and Elena's kids... You've only met them a handful of times. They have two daughters, Akemi and Shiho. Shiho is about your age and Akemi is about twenty. The organization is schooling Shiho here in America and Akemi has already been forced into the group. Maybe you can find them, Shiho most likely, as there's still a chance to save her and take down the organization with them."

"And Takeo? What about him?"

"Let's not think about that Kasuma-chan." A new voice said. Opening a door and walking out was their family friend, Sonoda Hitoshi, a short man with black hair and eyes. The man was still tan from jobs in Florida and Arizona and the dreary weather of the Willamette Valley didn't change that. The doctor strode over to Kasuma's father, Takashi Kouichi, and began whispering to him. Despite the hushed tones, Kasuma could still make sense of the conversation, "It doesn't seem like Hiromi-chan will be getting better any time soon. I know of some medications that may help but I need to attend to my other patients down at the hospital—"

"I can do it!" Kasuma immediately volunteered. "I'll pick them up! Just tell me what they are."

"Are you sure Kasuma-chan?" Hitoshi asked.

"I want to help my mom." Kasuma nodded, determination set in her face.

Hitoshi was silent as he exchanged looks with Kouichi. Finally Kouichi sighed and nodded. Hitoshi handed Kasuma a single sheet of paper. "Then… here. You don't need anything else except that paper. Show it to the pharmacy clerk and you should have no problems."

"Take some money as well, Kasuma," Kouichi said then. "And while you're at it, put on a disguise… nothing too drastic but at least make yourself look older. That way, you can use the motorbike and get there faster without raising any questions." With a nod, Kasuma ran up the stairs of their Central Oregon home and disappeared behind the doors of her room.

Hitoshi then turned to Kouichi and bowed slightly. "I'll be on my way then. The prescription for Hiromi-chan is sitting on the table by the door. When Kasuma-chan gets back, make sure to take a look at that." Having said this, Hitoshi grabbed his coat and hat and departed the house.

Soon after, Kasuma ran back out, a short strawberry blonde wig covering her dark hair. She grabbed a set of keys and ran out the door.

* * *

Sharon Vineyard stopped her advance when she heard an engine start up. The actress was currently wearing a loose pair of pants and a matching shirt, a black baseball cap holding all her platinum blonde underneath it. She hid behind a tree—a Douglas fir, by the looks of it—and watched as the motorcycle sped down the gravel driveway. She smirked sadly, 'I found you… Please don't bear a grudge against me.'

Sharon pulled out a pistol from underneath her shirt and checked the magazine. Full. With a sigh, Vermouth clamped on her poker face and walked parallel to the driveway, keeping to the security of the forest around her. The house she was seeking soon came into view, a large three story house that blended well with its surroundings. The front door was locked (she figured it'd be) so she pulled out a set of lock picks and began working at the doorknob. After a minute or so, the door clicked open and Vermouth walked in. She pulled out a small handgun and palmed it in case someone inside was ready for an ambush. In the meantime, while there was still no one around, Vermouth pulled out her phone and inputted a familiar number, the keys quietly playing a familiar tune. 'Karasu… naze naku no…? Yes… why do I cry indeed.' She swiftly typed in a short message: 'Targets found. On the kill.' The moment she pressed send, someone grabbed her wrist and twisted it behind her back. Vermouth dropped the phone out of pure shock, no sign of said shock present in her expression.

"So Anokata sent _you_ after us? Why am I not surprised?" Kouichi hissed as he managed the swipe the handgun from Vermouth's other hand. Ceasing struggle briefly, Vermouth awaited the moment Kouichi's grip around her wrist loosened. The moment coming soon after, Vermouth twisted out of his grip, pulling out her pistol and angled it towards his forehead. Despite the situation he was in, Kouichi smiled. "If you shoot… without a silencer, nonetheless, Takeo will hear you."

Vermouth smirked, masking her true feeling about the situation. "Perfect. That's just what I want. Do you know what my orders were? 'Kill that family…' In other words, kill _everyone_." Kouichi's eyes widened briefly. "Gomen ne, Kouichi-kun." Vermouth pulled the trigger, Kouichi's body falling to the floor. Vermouth stepped over him and concealed the pistol. "But don't worry… I still plan on protecting your daughter. Just don't be cross if I decide to experiment a little." At the sound of the gunshot, the soft pattering of feet was heard. Vermouth slipped into a nearby storage room.

"Tou-chan?!" Takeo's voice rang out as he ran down the stairs. As the seven year old turned the corner and spotted his father's body, the boy fell backwards, eyes wide and scrambling away from the scene. _"Tou-chan!"_

In that moment, Vermouth immediately revealed herself and grabbed Takeo. She extracted a cloth moist with chloroform and pressed it against the boy's mouth and nose. "I'm sorry… Ta-kun…" Sharon whispered as she saw his consciousness slip away. Setting him down gently next to his father, Vermouth searched the house until she found a tank of gasoline. 'Prepared… just like always,' she thought as she threw the gasoline across the floor of the foyer. She then opened a nearby door, which held a sleeping Hiromi (well that was convenient), and spilled some gasoline in that room as well, tracing a trail that connected with the liquid in the foyer. Finally, she walked back to the main entrance and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it and flinging it into a nearby puddle of gas, the liquid immediately catching fire. With one last look, Vermouth exited the house and calmly walked down the driveway.

"Ms. Vineyard…" Sharon froze, just as she had pulled out a pair of black gloves. "Why…?"

A twelve year old Kasuma stood in front of her, a small paper bag in her hands, eyes staring up at the women, absolutely betrayed. Sharon knelt down in front of Kasuma, placing a newly gloved finger in front of her mouth and whispering, **"A secret make a woman, woman."** She then rose and walked past the child, pulling out her pistol as she did. She removed the magazine and tossed it into the neighboring forest. She returned the gun to its position under her shirt. "Just know that I've got a soft spot for you Takashi Kasuma." 'May we never meet again… at least… not face to face,' she added silently. Vermouth then disappeared in the shadows.

Shakily, Kasuma pulled out a small cell phone and entered three numbers. **"Hello, this is Officer Wilder,"** came the answering voice.

"**Please help me,"** she whispered, her voice wavering drastically. **"My house… it's burning. My parents… and brother… they're inside. **_**They're inside!**_**"**

There was a pause from the officer on the other side of the line. Finally, he answered with, **"Don't worry girl, we'll help you. You'll be alright. Can you please tell me where you are right now? Your address?"**

"**Uh huh,"** Kasuma whispered.** "Um… my house is in the forest, there are trees within a twenty foot radius. The trees will die soon, please get her fast. My address is 91555 Ferry Way Monmouth, Oregon, 98248."**

"**Alright, we'll send a fire truck right away. Just stay right there, we'll be there right away."**

The officer would soon find out that the caller never stayed. Just as the call ended, Kasuma called another number, running into the forest as she did so, running away from the house. Away from her now old life.

The tears wouldn't stop as Kasuma finally stopped next to a Douglas fir tree. Leaning against the tree, Kasuma slid down to the ground and buried her head in her knees. How long had she sat there? She would never know but the next thing she knew were the strong arms of her uncle wrapping around her upper body. "Come on Kasuma… let's go."

* * *

-4 Days Later-

* * *

Glass shattered. The frame lay face down on the floor across the room. Broken shards of glass surrounded the frame. Another picture frame was thrown across the room, slamming against the wall and landing with a dull thud on the carpeted floor. Again and again, frames were thrown across the room. A man, known as Kazuki Atsushi, ran in then. "Kasuma, what's going on?!"

"She didn't have to come after us!" the young girl screamed. "She didn't have to _kill_ them! That traitor!" Kasuma walked backwards, withering down the wall the second her back touched it. She buried her head in her arms and sobs overtook her.

"Hey now," Atsushi soothed. "Even _I_ know what would have happened if Sharon disobeyed… and I wasn't even _in_ the Organization. Your parents knew the consequences of disobeying but they disobeyed regardless." Atsushi wrapped his arms around the twelve year old, tucking her head under his. "They were trying to protect you by leaving… and they did. I know I can't say the same thing about Takeo but I _can_ say that he wouldn't want you to mope around." Atsushi pulled a white handkerchief out of thin air and offered it to Kasuma. "Now dry your tears."

Kasuma rubbed her sleeve across her eyes and accepted the handkerchief, even though she never used it. Atsushi rubbed her back gently, then walked over to the ruined frames and flipped them over, displaying the pictures inside. All the pictures were taken under different circumstances but _all_ of them had one thing in common: the American actress Sharon Vineyard was present. "Why…?" Kasuma asked weakly. "After everything… all those years…"

"You can't expect to get an answer to everything," Atsushi told her. "You may never know why she turned on you." Atsushi set the photos gently on the floor. He then walked back to Kasuma. "I can already tell you won't bode well with me. I will, by any means, support you but staying with me won't be best for you. I think it'd be best for you to stay with that close family friend of yours."

"…Who?" Kasuma looked up at her uncle briefly before letting her head fall back on her knees.

"You were very close with them. Almost inseparable… Besides, with my moving around, they'd have an easier time with your up-bringing than I." Atsushi pulled out his phone and an address book and scanned through it, stopping about halfway through. He stepped outside the room as he talked to the person on the other line, all the while, Kasuma was curled up on herself, head buried in her arms. When Atsushi came back in, he knelt down in front of Kasuma, placing his hands on Kasuma's shoulders and said, "One of my good friends always said: 'Sometimes a trick may fail. But you mustn't bring that to the audience's attention. The essence of the heart is the most prominent ingredient of success. Focus on your show and never forget your poker face.'

"Well, you'd better gather up your stuff. You're leaving for London tonight." With that, Atsushi left the room, giving Kasuma some time of her own. How long Kasuma sat there, she'd never know but when she had calmed down significantly, she stood up shakily and walked over to the broken frames, carefully pulling out the pictures and stowing them in a pocket.

* * *

Thanks to the private jet her (rich) uncle had arranged for, Kasuma now sat in the London City Airport, using a trick said uncle taught her to jump a Japanese banknote from place to place—and it's not like anyone was going to snatch it up (after all, this was England, not Japan). Briefly pausing in her magic trick, Kasuma glanced up at the nearest clock, reading the time as 9:22 AM. "Oji-san couldn't just give me a _time_ as to when I'd be picked up?" she mumbled in annoyance.

"That's because we never _arranged_ a time, dear," a soft, kind voice said just then. Kasuma focused her gaze on Helen Hakuba as the woman sat down next to her and pulled the twelve year old into a hug. "I'm _so_ sorry about what happened," she whispered into her hair. "This shouldn't have happened to you." Kasuma clenched her eyes shut to stop the flow of tears threatening to fall then grabbed the small bag behind her. Helen pulled away, smiling wanly. "Let's get you home."

* * *

-1 Month Later-

* * *

Kasuma sat cross-legged upon her bed, reading the contents of an e-mail, everything else fading into white noise. The further she read into the mail, the deeper her frown grew. 'Tou-chan… Kaa-chan… just _what_ were you _doing_ for _Them_?' She pulled a thick book into her lap—one of the only books belonging to her parents that hadn't been destroyed. She flipped through the pages. 'First should be 'fons iuvenis'… Here it is.' Kasuma began intently reading the excerpt. So engrossed in the entry as she was, she never noticed the approaching footfalls until her door burst open. Jumping, she rapidly shut the book and closed her computer, her eyes falling on Hakuba Saguru walking in with a large basket in his arms. **"Don't you knock?!"**

"**I thought you heard me!" **Hakuba protested.** "It's not like I was being **_**quiet**_**… especially with this big thing. Mum went out and bought you some more stuff and she demanded I bring them up to you."** Hakuba, as carefully as he could considering the weight of the box, set said box down on the floor. **"I'm afraid you'll have to figure out what exactly she got you… I need to go back down and help Mum out with dinner preparations. Hopefully you'll break that uneven eating pattern you've been carrying and **_**join**_** us."** With that, Hakuba exited Kasuma's room, closing the door behind him.

'Don't count on it, Hakuba,' Kasuma thought as she temporarily ignored the box on the floor and turned back to the book. 'I need to figure out what my parents were working on. The e-mails on their private line aren't very helpful.' Kasuma lifted the screen of the computer and selected another older message. She quirked her eyebrow at the contents. Opening another window, she initiated a search for the name mentioned in the e-mail. 'Died four years ago… accident… magician…?' "Maybe Atsushi-ojisan knows about him…" Kasuma opened her phone and sent her uncle a message saying: 'Have you heard of Kuroba Touichi?' "Come to think of it… didn't Kaitou KID disappear four years ago…?" Opening yet another window, Kasuma began a search of the phantom thief. Just then, she received a reply from her uncle. She opened the message and read the reply. "Oh right… now I remember. I went to his show on the day of the accident." 'But why would he be mentioned in one of _Their_ e-mails?'

"**Kasuma, dear, please come down and join us,"** Helen said as she appeared in the doorway of the girl's room after giving a brief knock. **"I don't want to have to carry another plate up here… it takes **_**far**_** too long."**

Once again, Kasuma looked up from the book in her lap before sighing and closing both the book and computer and sliding off the bed. Helen smiled brightly in response, glad to have convinced the girl to leave the sanctity of her room.

* * *

-1 Year Later-

* * *

Hakuba was jerked awake by an unknown sound he couldn't locate. The young detective sat up, looking around his room for anything strange. Hakuba rested his eyes on the LED lights of the clock on his desk, which read 2:43 AM. Hakuba groaned, rubbing his eyes rapidly. **'Way. Too. Early,' **his brain slowly informed him.

There it was again, the unknown sound. Hakuba was wide awake now, ears fully engaging themselves in order to locate the origin of the sound. **'It's not some thief, is it?'**

Hakuba slid off his bed and quietly exited his room, looking down the second floor hallway for any sign of activity. Making a left turn, Hakuba made his way to his parents' room, cracking the door open and peering inside. Seeing the sleeping forms of Kouhei and Helen Hakuba, the door closed again. Turning around, Hakuba walked past his room and to the neighboring bedroom, cracking open its door as well. Eyes not immediately catching anything, Hakuba began to close the door, but not before a quiet whimper reached his ears. Fully opening the door, Hakuba scanned his childhood friend's room. There was nothing out of the ordinary… except for the restlessness in Kasuma's form. The girl, though clearly asleep, would not stop moving, tossing and turning under the purple sheets. Suddenly, before Hakuba's very eyes, the girl's whimpers swelled, rising to occasional screams and she began thrashing, the beddings rendered useless as they slowly slid off the bed. Eyes wide, Hakuba bolted into her room, ignoring the voice in his head that told him Kasuma was going to murder him for entering her room without permission. Gripping the girl's shoulders, Hakuba shook her, attempting to jar her from whatever nightmare—because that _must_ be the problem—she was having. **"Calm down! Kasuma, calm down!"** Another couple shakes. **"Stop! Wake up!"** Hakuba found himself repeating the same few phrases several times before Kasuma showed any kind of reaction. One more shake and Kasuma bolted up, tears immediately springing to her eyes as she took one glance at the figure in her room and grabbed him desperately. Shocked speechless, Hakuba slowly wrapped his arms around Kasuma, clueless as to how to comfort the sobbing girl. His weakness? No, not corpses or robbers or weapons (oh my) but crying. Hakuba Saguru _hated_ seeing someone crying… _especially_ someone of the opposite gender. **"Kasuma, what's wrong?"** He asked softly.

Shaking her head, Kasuma didn't answer, only clinging tighter to the detective. A very faint blush spread across Hakuba's cheeks, one that he would deny should anyone inquire about it later on… not that anyone would notice it in such a dimly lit room at three in the morning. Readjusting himself on the mattress, Hakuba drew his feet up and gently pulled Kasuma into his lap, where he could more easily embrace her. Kasuma's brief, sharp intake of breath was the only indication of acknowledgement of the action. As the girl continued crying, Helen Hakuba appeared in the doorway, rubbing sleep from her eyes. The blonde woman surveyed the scene then smiled softly, winking at her son before retreating back into her room. Hakuba bit back the sarcastic retort forming on his tongue and instead looked back at his childhood friend. Somewhat awkwardly, Hakuba rubbed soothing circles across the girl's back, timidly resting his head atop her own. How much time passed? Hakuba would never know but when the girl calmed down significantly, he quietly asked, **"Are you alright?"** Kasuma nodded briefly, her face still buried in Hakuba's shirt. **"What happened? Do you mind telling me?"** Kasuma whimpered, quietly, fisting the back of his shirt tightly. Hakuba tried a different approach; **"Was it a nightmare?"** the girl nodded. **"About what?"**

"**My… parents… and Takeo."** Hakuba mentally ran through a list of names until he identified Takeo as Kasuma's otouto. **"I was just arriving… from the pharmacy and… I saw the house on fire. I-I could hear them screaming for help but I couldn't reach them… no matter how fast I ran. And when the noise subsided, a woman… a woman with long blonde hair was pointing a gun at me. She told me 'Sorry' in such a cold voice t-then pulled the trigger. And then you woke me up."** Kasuma choked back a sob. **"I-I'm so scared. Scared that she'll come back… decide she should have gotten rid of me already and decide to kill me. And I-I'd put you and your family in danger and she'd kill you b-because of my involvement with you. I-It'll be all my fault and I-I don't want anyone to di—"**

"**Shhh,"** Hakuba soothed, running a hand through her long hair, **"I won't let anything happen to you." '**_**Never.**_** I'll **_**never**_** let this woman come back for you… whoever **_**she**_** is,'** he added silently.

"**Ha-hakuba…"**

"**My name's Saguru. **_**Sa-gu-ru**_**."**

"**But Saguru sounds weird,"** Kasuma whined.

"**Hey! That's **_**my**_** name you're insulting!"** Hakuba huffed indigently. A brief laugh escaped Kasuma and he smiled. **'At least she's not crying.'**

Hakuba stroked her hair a few more times before he began to shift towards the edge of the bed. He was stopped by the tightening of Kasuma's grip around his torso. **"…Kasuma?"**

"**Stay... Please?... I don't wanna be alone."**

"**You're not. You're never alone. I'll always be here… no matter what."**

"**Still… please stay,"** Kasuma insisted, hugging him even tighter.

Hakuba sighed but didn't object, lying back as Kasuma shifted under the covers. **'This is unlike you, Kasuma. You've **_**never**_** acted like this. What was so frightening about this woman you mentioned? Surely she isn't **_**that**_** much of a danger, is she?'** A blush made itself known when the girl buried her head in the crook of Hakuba's neck. **'So much for sleep.'**

**Final Notes: And that ends **_**that**_** lil' segment. Next chapter starts the next and last part of this arc. (*hinthintsecretswillberevealedhinthint*)  
****Awww… wasn't that a cute lil' endin'? (or maybe it's just me?)  
I feel like there was something else I wanted to day...I can't remember it though... meh oh well...  
****Anyway… see ya next time (whenever that is)**


	38. The Birth of Masked Magician (32)

**A/N: Part three of the Ta to Ka Arc!  
****Warnings: More backstory!  
****Acknowledgments: Cai-chan!  
****Other (possibly irrelevant): I'm really curious about your thoughts about this particular chapter. If you choose one chapter to review, please review this one and tell me what you think… (although I'd really appreciate if you didn't review just one chapter) :D**

**Today's quote is: "Tell me three things about 'res.'"—Rogo  
**"**It starts with 'e.'"—Aglacia**

* * *

Double-M and KID vs. Conan: The Birth of Masked Magician

* * *

-4 Years Ago-

* * *

"I don't know if I believe it, Oji-san." Kasuma and her uncle, Atsushi Kazuki, walked into a small magic shop on the outskirts of London. "It just sounds too fantastical to be true."

"That's not what matters, Kasuma," Atsushi replied. "There are people out there willing to kill for it. I may not completely agree with your _methods_ but it's better than doing nothing. Besides, you'll be finishing what your parents started. As I've told you time and time again, they were right in leaving the Organization as they did." Atsushi led Kasuma to the back of the shop, selecting a black top hat and several other items as he went. He handed the items to Kasuma. "These right here are some of the best products you'll find around here."

"I expected no less from the world-renowned magician KHA," Kasuma murmured, examining the items. "You know best when it comes to this."

"And _you_ know best when it comes to the Syndicate," Atsushi retorted, picking up several more items. "Hmm… well, this should be enough to get you started. Obviously, you'll need to get more stuff." Atsushi headed back towards the front of the shop, stopping just shy of the cashier to speak with the shop's manager. Finishing their brief conversation, the manager disappeared into the back room. Atsushi turned back to his niece. "I also had that item you requested made and ordered. However, from now on, you'll have to go to a different shop to pick it up. Patrick agreed to send it to this particular shop only once… you'll have to go to his shop for the future orders. I'll give you the address. He runs a costume shop; you will be able to utilize many of the products he stocks so he's a good resource… and trustworthy, he won't tell a soul about your method." The shop manager reappeared, carrying a small white box. He handed it to Atsushi who accepted it with a, **"Thank you."** Atsushi rotated and extended the box to Kasuma.

Gingerly, she accepted it and cautiously cracked open the cardboard lid. Peering inside, the examined the item: a full white mask with a spectrum of dots starting from red and the top and trailing down into yellow. The eyes were lined with a thick, vivid blue strip, six curved, green lines growing along the top of the eyes as they moved outwards. The painted-on nose was colored purple and a simple black line stood in for the mouth. 'The world is about to meet a new phantom thief.'

Thus, Masked Magician was born.

* * *

-1 Year Later-

* * *

It started out like any other heist. Scotland Yard had sent in men to the targeted museum to protect the precious stone, the group headed by Kouhei Hakuba. As was usual nowadays, Kouhei's son Saguru, already fairly well-known for his detective outside of heists, was accompanying his father. The set up was also familiar. Officers lined the building, roof, and room. Several trust-worthy officers surrounded the stone.

However, a dark shadow was over the museum.

'I have a bad feeling about this heist,' Kasuma, currently in the guise of one Maeka Greysen-Marie Sed, thought. She currently stood a block away from the museum, watching as Hakuba and a few other officers walked into the museum. Checking the time on her watch, she gripped her black backpack then walked towards the museum. Reaching a side of the museum that had a small number of guards, she threw a gas bomb, putting the officers to sleep. Knowing she had a minute range where she'd be unseen, she quickly set off to work, tying up the unconscious officers. She then pulled aside a fake wall panel she had set earlier in the day, revealing a vent with the screws already loose, and slipped into the opening.

* * *

A dark figure stood on a neighboring building, cell phone to ear as they gave orders to several other figures positioned in high places around the museum. Behind the figure were two others, one with long, fiery red (or was it orange) hair, the other with short black hair and a tattoo on her shoulder. Both of them had rifles to their sides, a bag filled with ammunition and other necessary items slung around their shoulders. **"Don't screw up,"** the figure said into the phone. **"**_**She'll**_** be overseeing us."** The phone slammed closed. **"The bitch that killed our ranks…"**

"**Ah ra? Well aren't you just a rude underling… Crocodile,"** the 'bitch' in question drawled. From the stairwell leading to the roof, Vermouth appeared, pulling a black hair-band out to allow her platinum blonde hair to fall down her back.

"**You **_**dare **_**have the **_**gall**_** to appear amongst us after you killed so many of Waykamatayan's ranks?! Have you even **_**finished**_** that killing spree?!"**

Vermouth smirked. **"Come now Croc, I finished that **_**years**_** ago. Although, if you keep getting on my nerves, I might have to start it up again; this sector needs a better leader anyways…" **Crocodile growled in response. **"So…? Who is Waykamatayan after that requires so much man power?"** Vermouth asked nonchalantly.

"**Kisama! Didn't you do your research?!"** the woman with short black hair hissed.

"**Calm down, T-Rex,"** her companion murmured. **"We're after Masked Magician. He's been causing an up-rise in the Organization… chasing after jewels that fit Pandora's description."**

"**Eh?" **Vermouth murmured. **"Thanks for that. Looks like Raven's the only reliable one around here."**

* * *

"**It's almost time,"** Kouhei announced. **"Stay on your toes!"** The officers of Scotland Yard took that announcement as the final warning, immediately running to their assigned locations. Kouhei turned to his son, **"Saguru, I want you to stand back… Who **_**knows**_** what Mage'll do tonight."** Fairly disgruntled, Hakuba grudgingly complied, walking towards a pillar by the entrance. Just as Hakuba reached his destination, smoke filled the room. When the smoke cleared, Mage was standing on the jewel case, smirking behind her mask.

"**Hello everyone~!"** Mage crooned in that familiar, neutralized voice.** "How have you all been fairing? Fine, I hope?"** As she said this, she stooped down and easily pried open the jewel case. Before she could grab the jewel, however, the guards around it lunged for the thief, the officers grabbing the white cape she had attached to her shoulders. Laughing, Mage released several smoke bombs. It was revealed that, after the smoke had cleared, the guards were passed out on the floor, the white cape discarded and draped over them. It was also revealed that the jewel was missing and Mage was standing on a higher ledge looking down at the officers.

That was when the usual turned into the unusual. The shock shown in Mage's eyes—something that no one would usually see—was the first giveaway. Next, the glass of a high window shattered and Mage fell off the ledge. Smoke filled the room next.** "Everyone**_** GET DOWN!"**_ No one had any time to register the order before another window shattered and an officer was tackled to the ground by the thief. Shocked (and dare he say scared?) Hakuba ducked behind the closest pillar, carefully peeking around the thick piece of architect in order to survey the scene. Looking up at one of the broken windows (the number was steadily growing), the fourteen-year old detective noticed a small figure on the roof of a neighboring building, another figure standing nearby. Bringing his gaze back down, Hakuba searched the room, unable to pick out the thief until she quickly ran past his pillar and tackled another officer. It was then that he finally realized that there were _bullet holes_ in the wall closest to him and looking around the room, he was able to spot several more bullets lying on the museum floor. How long had the shooting lasted? No one had any idea but when there was finally a lapse in gunfire, Mage took that opportunity to throw several smoke bombs, shooting a grappling hook up at one of the shattered windows and slipping through it. Breathing heavily and clutching her upper right arm, Mage spotted Crocodile, Raven, T-Rex, and Vermouth (thanks to her mask, her reaction to seeing Vermouth was concealed) across the way, Raven and T-Rex slowly lowering their weapons while Crocodile raised his gun upon seeing the injured thief.

"**Huh… you're still alive."** It was meant as a statement. **"I thought for sure **_**one**_** of those bullets would have killed you."**

"**It's called Kevlar, bastard,"** Mage gritted out. **"Get used to it… if you keep these shootings up, I'll be wearing one more often. Now why don't you and your vermin kind scram, Crocodile… Or maybe I should say 'Cock'… your behavior seems to warrant that."** Raven couldn't hold back a snicker at the comment and Crocodile sent her an icy glare.

"**You knew his codename,"** Vermouth began. **"May I inquire as to **_**why**_** you know it?"**

Mage smirked briefly then winced. **"I've known about you vermin for years. And that knowledge is exactly why I'm doing what I'm doing. You're after a jewel known as 'Pandora.' It is a doublet jewel and the inner jewel, when held under moonlight, will glow blood red. Legend has it that, with the passing of the Volley Comet, it will cry 'tears of immortality.' Let me tell you this: I will find Pandora first and when I do, you will never be able to find it ever again!"** With that said, Mage threw another few smoke bombs and disappeared.

* * *

-1 Year Later (February)-

* * *

Kasuma and Hakuba, both fifteen currently, headed north towards Park Crescent, their backpacks slung over their shoulders (well, at least Hakuba's was… Kasuma settled for carrying it over one shoulder). **"I don't think I'll **_**ever**_** get use to the Western Valentine's Day traditions…"**

"**Well that's because you're use to the whole 'girls giving chocolate to boys and getting return gifts one month later' practice. Traditionally, there are not people giving cards, flowers, or things like that in Japan,"** Hakuba retorted.

"**Do all Western countries pretty it up like in the movies? And some of the myths just sound so stupid," **Kasuma mumbled.

"**What, like the deal about birds finding their mates on Valentine's Day? Or the belief that the first male a girl sees from her window will be the one meant for her? It's not like we can change that. We didn't invent Valentine's Day after all."**

'How ironic… _you_ were the first one I saw pass by my window this morning… what were you even _doing_ out there? On the veranda, no less.' Kasuma shrugged, **"Well, you'll probably be too occupied with Mage to be thinking about Valentine's Day anyway."**

"**What's that supposed to mean?!"** Hakuba demanded.

"**I didn't suppose it to mean anything~"** Kasuma replied. **"Why, did**_** you**_** see some other meaning in it?"** Kasuma let a grin slip through.

Hakuba dropped his head into his hand. **"Why do I even bother? You're just going to twist it and find some way to divert the question."** Reaching the park, the two teenagers spotted a simple dark green car parked next to the curb. Kouhei was leaning against it, checking his watch every so often. He looked up and spotted the two students.

"**Hey, get over here! I need to get back to the station ASAP!"** Complying, the two of them sped their pace and jumped into the car. Kouhei glanced at Kasuma through the rear-view mirror as he drove off. "Kasuma-chan, should I drop you off at home or would you like to accompany Saguru and I to the station?"

"Actually, I'm pretty tired," Kasuma answered. "Can you just drop me off?"

"You sure about that?" Kouhei pressed. "Helen won't be home until around five. Will you be okay until then?"

Kasuma nodded, fiddling with the strap of her backpack, "I'll probably just get some sleep. By the time I wake up, Helen-obachan will surely be home." Kouhei nodded in response and Hakuba examined her face quietly, gauging for any giveaway signs.

Twenty minutes later and Kouhei and his son were walking into the Scotland Yard Headquarters. **"What have we got here?"** Kouhei asked a passing officer. **"What is that thief doing **_**this**_** time?"**

"**Well, first off, he shredded the heist note and sent it to Scotland Yard in a plastic bag… no prints were found, as usual," **the officer replied. **"We managed to piece it together correctly but on top of that, he formatted it in the usual riddle."**

"**And that's why I brought Saguru with me," **Kouhei said, patting his son on the back. **"Let him try it out."** Shrugging, the officer led the Hakubas to a different section of the building.

"**The note's on the desk over there,"** he told them, gesturing towards said desk.

"**It's going to take place at the high rise that's several blocks from here,"** Hakuba said after several minutes. **"The scheduled time is just after sunset."**

"**Hmm… if I remember correctly, that building is owned by Mr. Mason who has an expensive family heirloom. I believe it was a ruby… Looks like we found our victim. Let's get men out there immediately!"** Kouhei exclaimed.

* * *

Four hours later and the officers were prepared for the coming thief. Well, as prepared as they could be when up against the thief who gave Kaitou KID a run for his money. Officers lined the building and several others were stationed in strategically thought out locations inside. Inside the room housing the targeted ruby were the Hakubas and about eight additional officers. **"I heard there's suppose to be a lunar eclipse tonight," **Kouhei said to his son. Hakuba 'hmmed' in response. **"Lunar eclipses are suppose to be a bad omen for a foreshadowed evil force prevailing…"**

"**Well, it's a good thing I am not superstitious,"** Hakuba said in reply. **"Otherwise, I'd be too worried about whatever it is that's suppose to prevail tonight… taking into account that Mage is not an 'evil force.'"**

Kouhei smirked. **"I know you're not superstitious… Like father, like son, I suppose."** At that moment, a familiar cloud of smoke filled the room and the room's occupants covered their nose and mouth should there be any knockout gas mixed in. When the smoke cleared, Mage was revealed to be free-falling from the ceiling.

"**Why if it isn't young Holmes,"** Mage drawled in that borderline voice as she crouched down on top of the jewel case stand, arms folded behind her back. Hakuba had managed to inch closer to the jewel case in the confusion. **"So good of you to join me."**

"**I'm not here to **_**join**_** you; I'm here to **_**catch**_** you,"** Hakuba retorted, edging ever closer to the stand.

"**Tsk, tsk, that's a shame… though I fear you wouldn't make a good thief anyway. You're too…"** Mage swung her hands around, searching for the right word.

"**Righteous?"** Hakuba offered.

"**Now who said I wasn't righteous? You insult me, Holmes." **Mage skillfully opened the jewel case and extracted the jewel inside. **"Anyway,"** Mage straightened, **"Thanks for the jewel… You didn't do a very good job at **_**locking**_** the case, it would seem."** Mage shrugged, **"Oh well. Easier for me… Ta-ta!"** Mage jumped into the air, a smoke bomb going off just then to conceal the thief's movements.

"**After him! After Mage!"** Kouhei exclaimed, the other officers immediately setting off to work and leaving the room. When it was silent in the room, a glass panel slid away from the wall, Mage revealing herself from behind it.

"**Looks like I fooled them once again, well… **_**almost**_** all of them."** Hakuba hadn't left the room, his gaze locked on the glass panel and the thief next to it. **"Of course… looks like you caught me, Holmes."**

"**It would seem so,"** Hakuba replied, smirking. **"I'm surprised you were able to conceal that panel for so long. Then again… maybe I shouldn't be. After all, 'magician' **_**is**_** in your name."**

Mage smirked as well before shrugging, one hand moving underneath her cape. **"Well, as pleasant as our talks are, I'm afraid I must get going. Wouldn't a lunar eclipse be simply **_**lovely **_**to see? I don't want to miss tonight's so I'll be going."** Mage threw several smoke bombs and disappeared. Growling, Hakuba made for the exit of the building, the smoke having cleared rapidly. Just as he exited the building, an explosion was made known from inside the building.

"**What's going on?! What was that explosion?!"** Hakuba exclaimed, running up to the crowd of officers.

"**We don't know. Damnit, we**_** don't have any damn clue!**_**"** Kouhei hissed. **"Do a head count! Immediately!"**

"**Twenty here, sir."**

"**Fifteen here, sir."**

"**I've got twelve here."**

"**Ten."**

"**Thirteen here, sir."**

"…**Everyone's accounted for,"** Kouhei whispered.

"**I called the London Fire Brigade,"** Hakuba began. **"They should be here any time soon."** Another explosion erupted, smoke pouring out of the top floor windows. The heist occupants fled further away from the building, debris littering the ground. Ever since the first explosion, a crowd of people of the nearby areas had looked on at the scene with worry and fear and the crowd was growing fast. Taking action, the officers pushed the crowd away from the scene as they waited for the fire brigade, which arrived shortly after.

An hour later, everything was under control and the crowd had dispersed. The fire brigade hung around the building for inspection as the dispatched Scotland Yard officers scanned through the building. Kouhei and Hakuba were surveying the inside of the destroyed lobby when Kouhei's radio broadcasted an officer's voice, **"…Sir! There's a dead body!"**

"**What?! Where?"** Kouhei exclaimed, radio in hand.

"**Top floor,"** came the reply.

"…**That's where the last bomb was," **Hakuba said as he and Kouhei ran towards the nearest staircase and headed for the top floor. A crowd of officers were gathered on the top floor when the Hakubas reached the scene. Before them was a charred body, just like what was reported. The blue fabric of a Scotland Yard uniform could be picked out on the corpse. **"How did this happen…? Everyone was accounted for…"**

"**Everyone except…"** A foot or so away from the corpse was a small fragment of… something—it was hard to tell due to its size and the extent that it had been burnt. Hakuba stooped down and picked up the fragment with a handkerchief, turning it around in order to identify it. **'It… looks like a… mask…'**

"**I-I-it's M-mage! It's gotta be!"** a nearby officer exclaimed.

"**H-h-he's dead?!"**

* * *

-1 Month Later-

* * *

She pulled a black shirt and cloak on, covering the scars on her back and arms. She tucked her hair under a black wig cap, pulling a short black wig over it and securing it on her head. She threw the hood up. Looking over the webpage once more, she grabbed her lock picking set and a few other small items—nothing that could give away her identity—and turned off the computer. She took a deep breath, centering herself, then opened the room's window and climbed up to the roof (which wasn't far—her room was on the top floor).

Despite it being well into March, the wind was biting, making it feel several degrees less than it really was. Had she been standing instead of crouching, as she was, someone on the street may have noticed her cloak blowing in the wind. Checking the luminescent clock hands for the time, she stole across the roof and jumped onto a shorter, neighboring building. The map of London in her hand was difficult to read in the dead of the night and currently, the full moon was hiding behind a mass of clouds. "Tch, don't tell me my compass is broken…!" with a sigh, she pocketed the compass she had pulled out and climbed down to the ground level. Keeping to the side-streets and alleys, she headed west, never stopping until she reached her destination: a museum housing a brand new exhibit of precious stones and jewelry. 'If I remember correctly, the vent is…' She pulled out her grappling hook and aimed it at the roof, the hook latching onto the railing of the roof. Retracting the hook, she shot up to the roof and flipped over the railing.

On the roof, there was a grate about three feet wide and three feet long. Pulling out a long screwdriver, she worked at the screws at the corners of the grate. The grate was off in seconds, a record time, and she dropped down into it. It didn't take her long to find the main room of the museum and once she was in the vents above the room, she pulled out a mini computer, hacking into the security cameras and temporarily shutting them down. Before she settled on the museum floor, she scaled the sides of the room and placed her own small cameras right next to the museum's cameras and turned them on. 'At least this way, I'll just have to edit myself out and it won't be a complete lie about what was going on in here.' Completed with her small task, she dropped down and swiftly ran around the perimeter of the room, stopping at the cases of jewels on her mental list and picking the locks. After successfully extracting the jewels, she held each in a patch of moonlight and, seeing nothing of interest, returned the jewels and locked the cases. Her round of the exhibition room was a swift one and when she had finished, she collected her cameras and disappeared into the vent, exiting the museum shortly after.

The next day, nothing was amiss in the museum: the cameras had successfully captured every second of the night and the cases showed no sign of tampering.

* * *

-2 Months Later-

* * *

Smoke filled the far end of a second floor hallway of Willamette Academy. Several girls retreated from the cloud of smoke, coughing and waving their hands in front of their faces. It didn't take long for the smoke to clear. **"Dammit."**

"**What the hell are you doing?"** Julia (Amunet) Taylor asked of Kasuma, who was kneeling on the floor, tampering with something inside her locker.

"**Trying to work the kinks out of this contraption,"** Kasuma mumbled. **"Stupid thing activates whenever it wants…"** she added to herself.

"**What's this **_**for**_** anyway?"** Amunet asked, opening the locker next to Kasuma's and dumping several books into it, not caring where they landed.

"**Well it's **_**supposed**_** to be a security system of sorts… what with the high number of thefts going on nowadays. However, it doesn't like to listen to what I programmed it to do. Dammit." **Kasuma shook her right hand, having hit it against the edge of the locker while trying to pull something out.

"**Heeeeey! Look! Mage's gonna have another heist on the fifteenth!"** Rianna White exclaimed, waving her phone in the air.

After glancing briefly at the teenager talking with Amunet, Kasuma continued on with her work. **"Well, **_**that's**_** a lovely birthday present,"** she muttered to no one. However, _someone_ heard her comment.

"**Your birthday's on the fifteenth?"** Kasuma looked up to meet Rianna's gaze. Before Kasuma could give a verbal response, the bell rang and she grabbed her bag, slamming the locker closed and heading off to her next class.

Rianna turned to Amunet. **"I propose a surprise party… You're pretty close with Kasuma right?"**

Amunet shrugged. **"As close as you can get with someone who transferred several weeks ago."**

* * *

Kasuma landed on the roof of her uncle's permanent house in Oregon, folding the wing-shaped hang glider and jumping down onto the padded area she had created on the veranda in the back yard. Briefly, she extracted the jewel she had targeted, holding it in the palm of her hand and watching as the moonlight shown on the jewel. Nothing. Sighing, she slipped it back into a breast pocket and slipped into the house quietly. Removing the mask, Kasuma headed for the hidden wall panel on the opposite side of the room she was currently in, the living room. Before she could open the panel however, the front door burst open. Kasuma jumped then crashed to the floor, having landed oddly on the cape behind her. "Chikusho…!"

"**K-kasuma…? Is that you?"** Amunet cautiously asked as she walked further into the house after removing her shoes.

"**Damn it… please don't tell anyone about this,"** Kasuma pleaded, quickly releasing the cape and removing the wig. **"I can**_**not**_** afford to be stopped."**

"…**All this time I thought your tiredness was because of homework… **_**you're**_** Mage?!"**

"**That's awesome!"** Rianna exclaimed. **"Well… within reason…"**

Within seconds, Kasuma was out of the Mage uniform and on her feet. **"You have **_**got**_** to **_**swear **_**that you won't turn me in! Please, I **_**need**_** to be able to continue. I'm doing this for a good reason."**

"**C'mon, even if we haven't been very close, I'm sure you've heard our conversations about Mage… We're big fans! We're not gonna turn hi—**_**her**_** in. That means no more amazing shows,"** Rianna said.

"**I know it's illegal to assist and abet a criminal but screw the law! I know you well enough to know you don't do anything just because," **Amunet grinned at the Japanese teen.** "But now that we essentially have Mage cornered, I wanna hear her whole story. You'll give us **_**that**_** much, won't you?"**

* * *

-4 Months Later-

* * *

"**According to the map, you should be approaching Disney World's Magical Kingdom anytime now,"** Amunet's voice announced through an earpiece in Kasuma's possession.

"**Yeah, I see it… it's not hard to miss the towers of Cinderella's Castle," **Kasuma answered in Mage's traditional voice.

"**Ya know… It'd be **_**super **_**easy to slip into the Disney World crowd. Saguru would stand no chance at finding you… Why did you even bring him into this WLH? Seeing as he lives in the UK…"**

"**It's a lot more challenging with him in the picture… Besides, it's been a while since I've seen him… granted, I can't really show my face very often during this thing… since I'm supposed to be staying with your family in some other area of the country,"** Kasuma replied. It was then that she suddenly lost control of her glider. "Shit!" She quickly looked up at her glider. "As I thought… Hakuba's aim is as impeccable as ever."

"**H-hey! What's going on?!"** Amunet demanded through her phone, flashing then scanning an annual pass at the woman stationed at the park gate. She ran down Main Street, USA, toward the looming building of Cinderella's Castle. Amunet caught the glider of her friend as it disappeared behind one of the towers. Behind her, she heard numerous police sirens and she whipped her head around to the source. **'Shit! That was fast.'** The Egyptian ran down the nearest path way and concealed herself in a particularly large crowd of people. She ran a hand through her short red hair with a sigh. **"I can't get to you yet… Maeka. The police just got here… led by Saguru, of course."**

"**That's alright,"** Kasuma's voice said just then, her friend barely catching the pained breaths of the part-time thief. **"It's not like I can move right now anyway… and Saguru won't be able to find me given where I landed."**

"**Hey! Are you alright?! You sound pained… Did you break something?"**

"**N-no, I'm not alright and no, I didn't break something… but you'll need to find a way to get up in the towers… and make sure you bring a first aid kit; I **_**really **_**need it right now…"**

* * *

When the number of police officers became scarce, Amunet had hoisted herself into the towers using Mage's grappling hook she managed to fish out of the water surrounding the castle. Carefully but swiftly, the Egyptian maneuvered her way through the towers and platforms of the tall castle, finally finding her Asian friend lying beside one of the taller towers. Red stained the teen's cape and suit underneath it. **"H-hey…! I though you said you didn't break anything!"**

"**I didn't,"** Kasuma murmured as she slowly moved into a sitting position. Kasuma had removed the mask but not the wig so Amunet was able to see exactly how much pain the teen was in. **"I'm just gonna have a nasty scar on my back… it'll be harder to cover up, that's for sure. Luckily, no vital organs were punctured."**

"_**P-punctured?!**_**"**

"**Y-yeah… see that tower up there?"** Kasuma nodded her head to the tower closest to her. **"It's made up of plastic and steel… Hurts like hell…"**

"**C'mon, let's get you wrapped up,"** Amunet murmured, unhooking the cape from Kasuma's shoulders. **"You can't walk around with a large bloodstain on your back… you'll attract Saguru's attention for sure; he's still walking around here, after all."**

"**Which means I'll also need a face and hair change,"** Kasuma sighed as she let Amunet shed the suit and left the white dress shirt underneath it.

"**I'm surprised you didn't wear your Kevlar,"** Amunet sighed has she cleaned the bloody mark that went from her shoulder blade to her lower back.

"**I had no worries about being attacked by **_**Them**_**,"** Kasuma replied, leaning forward on her raised knees. **"Besides… Saguru has a tendency to shoot me down before any of **_**Their**_** bullets hit me. I'm sure that's ticked **_**Them**_** off plenty of times… wish I could've seen **_**Their**_** faces… tch! What the hell are you using?! That stung… more than usual."**

"**Disinfectant… Sorry, love, gotta use it to make sure you don't get anything else besides a scar."**

**Final Notes: There really **_**was**_** a lunar eclipse in 2007 (two, actually) but I purposefully switched up the date (it was really on March 3). Thought I'd mention that in case anyone tried to look it up (I don't know if there's anyone who'd actually look up the stuff I mention but… *shrug*) or if I maybe confused someone who remembered seeing a lunar eclipse in '07 (I know I wouldn't have)…  
****And another thing… 'Willamette Academy' is not a real school (at least, to my knowledge). That name came up because the Willamette River splits the east and west sides of Portland (and since Kasuma's school was **_**in**_** Portland…)**

_**Coming up next in Double-M and KID vs. Conan: "Kaito, now it's your turn."**_


End file.
